Document processing system using full image scanning

ABSTRACT

A system for tracking currency bills comprises a currency scanning device. The scanning device includes a sensor that retrieves currency identification characteristic information of each bill processed. The currency identification characteristic information permits the unique identification of each bill processed. The system further comprises a customer identification means and means for associating each processed bill with the customer depositing the bill. Means for identifying the customer (or customer account) associated with a particular processed bill after the deposit transaction has been completed is also included in the system.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of priority from U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/965,428, filed Sep. 27, 2001 entitled “DocumentProcessing System Using Full Image Scanning.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the invention relates generally to a document processingsystem and, more specifically, to systems whereby information used totrack and authenticate currency bills is extracted from an imageobtained of the currency bills.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the financial banking industry, and in general, it is important thatcounterfeit currency bills are discovered quickly and accurately.Currently, numerous counterfeit detection devices exist that attempt todetect counterfeit bills. Some of these devices include comparing thelight, visible, infrared, and/or ultraviolet, emitted from tested billsto light emitted from known genuine bills. Other security features ingenuine bills include watermarks, magnetic printing, and securitythreads. These devices, however, do not catch all counterfeit bills.Undetected counterfeit bills are sometimes accepted for deposit into adepositor's financial account (i.e., a savings and/or checking account),often at the loss to the bank. For example, if a counterfeit bill passesthrough the device undetected and is later discovered to be counterfeit,there is no way to discover who deposited, gave, or otherwise disposedof the counterfeit bill. When a counterfeit bill is passed onto a bankor a company, the entity discovering that the currency bill is acounterfeit bears the loss. Thus, a bank using any of these deviceswould still be unable to charge customers for counterfeit currency billsonce it is discovered that the bill is counterfeit.

Another drawback of some current counterfeit detection devices is speed.In some counterfeit detection devices, currency bills must be fed intothe devices one by one, which requires manual operation and is quiteslow. If it is the customer (a depositor at a bank or a consumer at aretail location) who must feed the bills, this may create customerdissatisfaction with the entity requiring such methods. Alternatively,if it is the entity accepting the bills that manually feeds the billsthrough the devices, then they must pay someone to feed the bills intothe device. Also, another drawback is that customers must wait in longerlines to have their deposits processed because each deposit takes longerto process.

Therefore, there is a need for a device that provides for an improvedmethod of tracking the movement of currency bills that may be used byentities that deal with a high volume of currency bills (such asfinancial institutions, retail stores, casinos). There is also a need toquickly process a deposit, so time spent in line or feeding the machineis minimized.

In addition to losses experienced by banks due to counterfeit currencybills, banks often experience losses due to forged or counterfeitchecks. Currently, when a check comes into a bank for payment, thecustomer may provisionally be given credit for the check. The check isthen routed through the Federal Reserve banking system to the bank thatthe check is drawn against. Once the payee bank receives the check, thecheck is taken to a processing center where the check is authenticated.The checking account number and check number will be checked forvalidity as well as to see if any stop payments have been placed on thecheck. Check amounts may be verified against set limits and signaturesmay be verified against signature cards. If a check is deemed to be aforgery or as one that should not be paid, the payee bank returns thecheck to the depositing bank, which will then debit the account to whichthe check was deposited.

There are, however, problems with the current system. First, it takestime to do all the processing, and the Federal Reserve Bank has imposedtime limits as to how long a bank has to return a check. If the check isnot discovered to be fraudulent until after the deadline has passed, oneof the banks will bear the cost of the amount of the check. Also,because of these deadlines, some banks may only have time to verifysignatures on high dollar amount checks, thus bearing the risk of lowdollar amount checks. This leaves the banks open to risk on numerous lowdollar amount checks. Sometimes, the customer may be overdrawn or haveclosed the account by the time the depositing bank returns the check,which also leaves the bank open to the possibility of bearing the loss.

Many banks allow people to cash checks drawn on that particular bank. Inthis case, there is no way for the teller to know prior to disbursingthe money whether the check is forged or if it should not be paid foranother reason. A teller may verify the signatures and check for stoppayments (when a customer indicates to the bank not to pay a certaincheck number) on checks drawn on that bank. This is insufficient in manyinstances and may also be very time consuming, depending on how thesignatures for the account are stored and how many the teller must lookthrough.

Also, many banks allow their customers to cash checks that are drawn onother banks. This also carries risk for the bank, since the check may bereturned and the account may have insufficient funds or the account maybe closed. Another problem is that the Federal Reserve requires that acertain amount ($100) of the check become available after a certain timeperiod, which may be before the check has been verified by the payeebank. This also opens the bank to certain risks.

Thus, there is a need for a device that can be used by a teller or acustomer that can quickly verify whether a check should be paid.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one embodiment, a system for tracking currency billscomprising a currency scanning device is provided. The scanning deviceincludes a sensor that retrieves currency identification characteristicinformation of each bill processed. The currency identificationcharacteristic information permits the unique identification of eachbill processed. The system further comprises a customer identificationmeans and means for associating each processed bill with the customerdepositing the bill. Means for identifying the customer (or customeraccount) associated with a particular processed bill after the deposittransaction has been completed is also included in the system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The foregoing and other advantages of the invention will become apparentupon reading the following detailed description and upon reference tothe drawings.

FIG. 1 is a functional block diagram of a document scanning deviceaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a document scanning device according toone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 a is a flowchart describing the operation of a document scanningdevice according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 b is a flowchart describing the operation of a document scanningdevice according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 c is flowchart describing the operation of a document processingsystem according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 d is a flowchart describing the operation of a document scanningdevice according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 e is a flowchart describing the operation of a document scanningdevice according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 a is a block diagram of a document processing system according toone embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 b is a block diagram of a document processing system according toan alternative embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 c is a block diagram of a document processing system according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a functional block diagram of a document scanning deviceaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a top view of a document being transported past an imagescanner so as to permit scanning along the wide dimension of thedocument.

FIG. 7 is a side view of a document being transported past an imagescanner so as to permit scanning along the narrow dimension of thedocument.

FIG. 8 is a functional block diagram of an image scanner of a documentscanning device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram of a document scanning deviceaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 a is a representation of an image file of a currency billaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 b is a representation of an image file of a check according toan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a compact document scanning deviceembodying the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a side cross-sectional view of the device shown in FIG. 11.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a compact document scanning devicehaving multiple pockets according to one embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 14 is a side cross-sectional view of the device shown in FIG. 13.

FIG. 15 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a documentprocessing system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a documentprocessing system according to an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 17 a is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 b is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to another embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 a is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 b is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to another embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 18 c is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 19 a is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 b is a flowchart describing the operation of the documentprocessing system according to an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 20 is a functional block diagram of a document scanning deviceaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a functional block diagram of a document scanning deviceaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a functional block diagram of a document scanning deviceaccording to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a document scanning device according toone embodiment of the present invention.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way ofexample in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. Itshould be understood, however, that the invention is not intended to belimited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the invention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

DESCRIPTION OF ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS

Everyday, businesses and people unknowingly accept counterfeit currencybills as genuine bills. The term “currency bills” refers to officialcurrency bills including both U.S. and foreign currency. It also refersto bills issued by casinos (e.g., casino script), other private entitiessuch as “DISNEY DOLLARS®” (a registered trademark of Walt DisneyEnterprises of Burbank, Calif.), and bar coded transaction records. Acounterfeit currency bill is a currency bill which is not issued by anauthorized maker. For example, in the case. of U.S. currency bills, acounterfeit currency bill would be a document printed to look like agenuine U.S. bill but not printed by the U.S. Treasury Department'sBureau of Engraving and Printing. In terms of casino script, acounterfeit currency bill would be a script that is not issued by thecasino or one that has been tampered. Bar coded transaction recordsinclude items such as those given by casinos in lieu of cash at themachine or gambling table. The bar code represents a number that isstored in a database. The number is then related to a dollar amount.When a person redeems the bar coded transaction record, the encodednumber is read and the correlating amount of money is delivered to thecustomer. Bar coded transaction records may also be coupons or tickets.The term “businesses” refers to any business or entity accepting moneyfrom another entity or person. Throughout most of this description, theterm “bank” will be used for ease of description. It should beunderstood, however, that this invention also applies to people,companies, corporations, other financial institutions such as savingsand loans, and any other entity that receives currency bills. To reducethe costs associated with receiving counterfeit bills and to prevent thereceiving entity, such as a bank, from having to assume all of the risksand costs from accepting counterfeit bills, a document processing systemaccording to the present invention may be used.

Turning now to FIG. 1, a block diagram of a document scanning device 100according to one embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. Thedocument scanning device 100 includes an input receptacle 110, atransport mechanism 120, and an output receptacle 130. For ease ofdescription, only one input receptacle 110 and one output receptacle 130are shown in this drawing. The document scanning device 100 may,however, include any number of input receptacles 110 and outputreceptacles 130. For example, a device may have two input receptacles,one for currency bills and one for checks, or simply to accommodate agreater number of currency bills.

An operator inserts a currency bill 135 into the input receptacle 110.In this application, the term “operator” refers to someone who is acustomer of the bank or other entity utilizing the system or to someoneemployed by the owner of the scanning device to ensure proper running.The document scanning device 100 may be used in a variety of situationswith a variety of operators. For example, the document scanning device100 may be used as a stand-alone device, like an Automated TellerMachine, in which the operator is a customer who uses the device todeposit currency bills into a bank account. In another embodiment, thedocument scanning device 100 may be a semi-attended device where both acustomer and an employee of the entity are at the device. In anotheralternative embodiment, the document scanning device 100 may be usedonly by employees of the bank or other entity using it.

As stated above, the document scanning device 100 may receive onecurrency bill or may receive a stack of currency bills into the inputreceptacle 110. The transport mechanism 120 is coupled to the inputreceptacle 110 and is adapted to transport the currency bill 135 throughthe document scanning device 100, past an image scanner 140 and to theoutput receptacle 130. A controller 150 is linked to the image scanner140, the transport mechanism 120, a memory 160, and an operator controlpanel 170. The controller is adapted to control the operation of thetransport mechanism 120 and the image scanner 140, communicateinformation to and from the memory 160, and to communicate informationto and from the operator control panel 170. For example, the controller150 may send display information to and receive operator input from theoperator control panel 170.

Once the image scanner 140 receives an instruction from the controller150, the image scanner 140 scans the currency bill 135, and obtains animage of the currency bill. The image may be an image of substantiallythe entire currency bill 135 (a “full image”) or of selected portions ofthe currency bill 135. The image scanner 140 may contain opticalcharacter recognition (OCR) software for identifying the charactersprinted in one or more fields of the currency bills. The OCR may alsorecognize certain fields within the currency bill 135. For example, theOCR may search the full image for a serial number, extract the serialnumber once the field is located, and transfer the determined serialnumber to the memory 160 through the controller 150 for storage. In analternative embodiment, the image scanner 140 is directly linked to thememory 160 for the transfer and storage of the images and/or extracteddata.

As stated above, the memory 160 is used to store the images of thecurrency bill 135 scanned by the image scanner 140. In one alternativeembodiment, the memory 160 may store the full image of the currency bill135 (i.e., a picture of the entire bill 135). In another embodiment, thememory 160 may only store an image of a portion of the currency bill135. It may be that the memory 160 only needs to store an image of halfof the currency bill 135 and still have the fields needed for thatbank's purposes. In another embodiment, the memory 160 may only store astrip of the currency bill 135. According to an alternative embodiment,the memory 160 also stores extracted information, such as informationwhich may be used to uniquely identify bills, track bills, and/or assistin detecting counterfeit currency bills. For example, it is known thatpeople who create counterfeit U.S. currency bills often reuse the sameserial number on the currency bills. Therefore, once a serial number isassociated with a counterfeit currency bill, this number is stored inthe memory 160.

When a new currency bill is scanned, the controller 150 compares theserial number of the scanned currency bill against any serial numbersstored in the memory 160. If a match is found, the controller 150 maysend a signal to the operator control panel 170 to indicate that asuspected counterfeit bill has been found. In one embodiment, the billsuspected to be counterfeit may be flagged. In some embodiments, anumber of data can be used to assess whether a bill is a suspect bill,including serial number, denomination, series, issuing bank, imagequality, infrared characteristics, ultraviolet characteristics, colorshifting ink, watermarks, metallic threads, holograms, etc., or somecombination thereof.

In other types of currency bills, another predetermined or encoded fieldmay be used to check for authenticity. For example, in bar coded ticketsor currency using bar codes, certain bar codes may be known to becounterfeit. Alternatively, other security features, such as certainarrangements only going with certain denominations, may be utilized todetermine the authenticity of the currency bill. For example, a hologrammay only be used with high denomination currency bills, a lowerdenomination bill that has the hologram would be recognized as beingcounterfeit. Other encoded fields may also be utilized in a similarfashion. In some embodiments, the fields utilized may be overt securitycodes, such as a series number, or they may be covert security codesthat are not made public by the government to ensure maximum security.

In some embodiments, the controller 150 may cause the operation of thedocument scanning device 100 to halt once a counterfeit currency bill isflagged or detected so that the suspect bill may be examined. Accordingto one embodiment, such as in a device having more than one outputreceptacle, the suspected counterfeit bill may be off-sorted to anotheroutput receptacle, while the document scanning device 100 continues torun. Once this occurs, the operator may be notified of the serial numberof the counterfeit bill via the operator control panel 170. The operatorcontrol panel 170 may be, for example, a display screen that is capableof depicting images or it may only be an LED light that illuminates orblinks to warn of a counterfeit bill.

Turning now to FIG. 2, a perspective view of a document scanning device100 is illustrated. In this particular embodiment, the document scanningdevice 100 includes an additional control panel 180 (e.g., a customercontrol panel) for receiving and displaying information. The customercontrol panel 180 may be used by a depositor who is waiting while theircurrency bill 135 is being scanned by the document scanning device 100.This may be useful if a customer is willing to wait to ensure that allof the bills are authentic.

FIG. 3 a is a flowchart describing the operation of a document scanningdevice, such as the document scanning device 100 of FIGS. 1 and 2. Atstep 200, a customer or operator inserts a stack of documents, such ascurrency bills, into the document scanning device. At step 205, thescanning device obtains a customer identification number. The customeridentification number is a way to link the customer making the depositto the items in the deposit. The customer identifier may be any type ofunique identifier, such as an account number, PIN, merchant number,social security number, driver's license number, credit/debit/smart cardnumber, and bar coded or other encoded number. The customer identifiermay be encoded based on the customer's name or any other identifyingnumber (such as driver's license number or social security number). Thecustomer identifier may also be an alphanumeric code, a fingerprint, orscan. The customer identifier may also be obtained by a video image ofthe customer or any other known way to identify a person. The customeridentification number may be obtained in any number of ways by acustomer identification input device, including reading the accountnumber off an encoded sheet, such as a bar encoded slip or a MICRencoded deposit slip, having it input into the device by an operator orby a customer (such as inputting a PIN or an actual account number), orreading it from a debit/credit/smart card that is input into the device,to name a few. The customer identification input device may be any knowndevice capable of receiving commands, such as a keyboard, a keypad, atouch screen, or a mouse. The customer identification input device mayalso be any type of reader, such as a MICR reader, a bar code reader, anoptical reader, or others known in the art.

The currency bills are then transported one at a time past the imagescanner by the transport mechanism (step 210). An image is then obtainedat step 212. At step 220, data, such as a serial number, is thenextracted from the full image of the currency bill using the OCRsoftware. The extracted serial number is then compared to a list ofserial numbers stored in the memory (step 230). The stored serialnumbers are serial numbers that are known to be associated withcounterfeit bills. At step 240, the scanning device then inquires as towhether a match was found. If the serial number of the scanned currencybill matches a serial number stored in the memory, then the processmoves to step 250 and the currency bill is flagged.

According to the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3 a, the documentscanning device continues to run when a match occurs. The controllerprovides an indication of the suspected counterfeit bill via the controlpanel to the customer and/or operator of the system (step 270). Thecontroller may also direct that an indication be placed on the imageexplaining why the currency bill was flagged. The indication may be ablinking light, the image may be depicted on a display screen, or thematching serial number may be displayed. In another embodiment, thecontroller may direct the suspected counterfeit bill to one outputreceptacle, while genuine bills are transported to another outputreceptacle. The process then moves to step 280 and the image of thesuspect counterfeit is stored in the memory. This may be done for recordkeeping purposes or for later analysis by bank personnel and/orgovernment officials.

If the serial number of the currency bill does not match any of theserial numbers stored in the database, the document scanning devicemoves directly to step 245 and other counterfeit tests are run on thebill. These may include UV tests, infrared tests, thread tests, andmagnetic tests. The image itself may be tested by comparing the image toan image of a “genuine” bill. The software can look for distorted images(i.e., lines that run together), missing images, (i.e., a car on a tendollar bill), and other inaccuracies. If the currency bill fails (answeris no to question of whether the currency bill passed all the othertests), the scanning device proceeds to step 250 and continues as statedabove. If the currency bill passes all other tests, it proceeds to step280 and the image is stored in a memory. In some embodiments, step 245may be done prior to performing step 240. The currency bill istransported to an output receptacle at step 282. After the image isstored in memory, the device then inquires as to whether any more billsneed to be scanned (step 290). If the answer is yes, than the processreturns to step 210. Once all of the bills have been scanned and stored,the process ends.

In other embodiments, step 280 may be done before the serial number isextracted at step 220. Also contemplated is an embodiment in which theimages of suspect counterfeit bills are not stored in the memory. Inthat embodiment, the process would move directly from step 270 to step282.

The scanning device and procedure discussed in FIG. 3 a may also be usedwith foreign currency. In some cases, the foreign currency bills mayhave different security techniques, such as holograms on certain bills.For example, Germany uses holograms on high denomination DeutscheMarks,but not on many low denominations. If the image scanner sees thehologram (OVD) on a lower note, the note is determined to becounterfeit. Also, the nature of thread may be different depending onthe amount of the bill. Oftentimes, the higher the bill, the moresophisticated the security techniques utilized in the thread. Somecountries, for example, use plastic sandwiched between paper and theremay be a hole with an image on the plastic. The scanning device of thepresent invention may be modified to read that image and determine itsauthenticity.

Turning now to FIG. 3 b, an alternative operation of the scanning devicewill be described. In this embodiment, the scanning device receiveschecks instead of currency bills. At step 200 b, a stack of checks isinserted into the input receptacle. In another embodiment, the checksmay be inserted one by one into the input receptacle. At step 205, thescanning device obtains a customer identification number. The customeridentification number is a way to tie the customer making the deposit tothe items in the deposit. The customer identifier may be any type ofunique identifier, such as an account number, PIN, merchant number,social security number, driver's license number, credit/debit/smart cardnumber, and bar code or other encoded number. The customer identifiermay be encoded based on the customer's name or any other identifyingnumber (such as driver's license number or social security number). Thecustomer identifier may also be a password, an alphanumeric code, afingerprint, or scan. The customer identifier may also be obtained by avideo image of the customer or any other known way to identify a person.The customer identification number may be obtained in any number ofways, including reading the account number off an encoded sheet, such asa bar encoded slip or a MICR encoded deposit slip, having it input intothe device by an operator or by a customer (such as inputting a PIN oran actual account number), or reading it from a debit/credit/smart cardthat is input into the device, to name a few.

The check is then transported via the transport mechanism past an imagescanner at step 210 b. The scanning device obtains an image of the checkat step 212 b and, at step 220 b, extracts the ABA number, accountnumber, and check number. The extraction may be done using OCR softwaresimilar to the procedure described in reference to FIG. 3 a. Also, thecheck number, account number, and ABA number may be extracted by a MICRreader. At step 230 b, a database containing suspect ABA numbers,account numbers, and check numbers will be scanned for matches. In oneembodiment, the scanning device will first search for matches in the ABAnumber, then for matches in account number and, finally, for matches incheck number. Alternatively, the scanning device can search for thecombination in any order.

The flagged accounts will be transmitted to the database by the banksthemselves. It may only be the bank that is receiving the check or otherbanks may transmit information to the scanners.

At step 240 b, the scanning device asks if there is a match between therecords in the database and the scanned image. If the answer is yes, thecheck is then flagged at step 250 b. There could be numerous reasons asto why a check may be flagged. For example, a check could have a stoppayment on it. In this example, the specific combination of ABA,account, and check number would be flagged as not to be paid since thecustomer decided not to pay the item. A check could also be flagged ifit is known that someone is forging signatures on this check. The flagcould indicate to hold the check until the signature can be verified atthe payee bank. In another alternative, the signature from the checkcould be displayed on a screen for an operator. The operator could alsoupload the signatures on the account and compare the images. If thesignatures are the same, the operator may choose to accept the check andindicate such on the device. Alternatively, the operator may choose notto accept the item and also indicate such. Another alternative would beto give back the check to the customer if there is a hold and thecustomer does not want to deposit the item. Alternatively, a check maybe flagged if it is over a certain dollar amount that either the bank orthe customer set for a limit. Other abnormalities may be verified, suchas requirements on checks over a certain dollar amount (i.e., checksover $1,000 on a certain account may require two signatures instead ofone).

In another embodiment, it may not be the check, but the entire accountthat has a hold on it. For example, an account could have a hold put onby a government entity or as a result of a judgment against them. Anaccount could have a hold on it because it is new, because it has beenoverdrawn a number of times or because it is currently overdrawn. Theseholds would be transmitted by the payee bank to the scanning device,which would update the memory. A bank may choose to not cash checks thatare drawn on accounts that have holds on them, but to accept them fordeposit, in case the hold is released.

Next, at step 270 b, the scanning device provides an indication of nopay on suspect image. The image will then be flagged with an indicationof the reason(s) for failure, such as a stop payment, fraud suspect,violating a dollar limit, etc. This allows someone to retrieve the imageat a later date and know why the check was held or returned. In someembodiments, this step may be omitted from the procedure. The image isthen stored in the memory at step 280 b for later viewing and/orprinting. The check is then transported to the output receptacle and thedevice moves to step 290 b, asking if there are any more checks to bescanned. If the answer is positive, the procedure returns to step 210 b.If not, the procedure ends.

If the check does not have a hold on it, the process moves directly tostep 280 b and continues as described above.

In another embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 3 c, after a suspectcounterfeit bill is flagged at step 250, the controller then transportsthe suspect counterfeit bill to an output receptacle at step 255. Then,the controller halts the transport mechanism of the document scanningdevice (step 260) so that the suspect counterfeit is presented in theoutput receptacle. Then, the operator may inspect the bill and/or removethe bill to separate the suspect counterfeit bills from theauthenticated currency bills. Once the operator has examined the bill,the operator may then choose to accept or reject the bill at step 262.The operator may choose to accept the bill by pressing an accept buttonor by indicating the value of the bill in the scanning device. Theoperator may choose to reject the bill by merely pressing a continuebutton or by pressing “reject” on the scanning device. At step 265, theoperator restarts the operation once the flagged bill has been inspectedand/or removed from the document processing system and the systemcontinues at step 280.

Turning now to FIG. 3 d, a modified flow chart is illustrated depictinghow the scanning device performs the above process in relation tochecks. This flow chart proceeds from step 230 b of FIG. 3 b to step 240b where it is asked if the ABA, account, and check numbers on thescanned check match any of those stored in the database. At step 250 b,a suspect image is flagged. At this step, an indication as to why thecheck is flagged may be provided to the operator on a screen, along withan image of the check. In some embodiments, the check may then betransported directly to an output receptacle at step 255 b. In otherembodiments, the process may skip directly to step 260 b. At step 260 b,the operation of the machine is halted, allowing the operator to viewthe image on the screen or remove the actual check for verification. Theoperator may then, at step 262 b, choose whether to accept or reject thecheck. Should the operator choose to accept the check, the value of thecheck may need to be indicated. In some embodiments, the value wouldhave been previously determined. In these cases, the operator only needsto press an accept button and the device adds the value of the check tothe totals. Next, at step 270 b, the scanning device is restarted afterthe operator makes a decision regarding the check. The operator maysimply press a restart button or move to accept or reject the check.

The image is then stored at step 280 b. This may be done before, after,and/or while the scanning device is halted. Next, the process moves tostep 290 b where it is asked whether there are any more checks to bescanned. If the answer is yes, the scanning device moves to step 210 band continues the process. If the answer is no, the process ends.

Turning now to FIG. 3 e, a flowchart describing another embodiment ofthe present invention is now described. As in the prior embodiments, astack of documents, either checks, currency, or other paper documents,is inserted into the input receptacle at step 200 e. Next, at step 205e, the customer identifier is obtained. The customer identifier may beany of the identifiers described above. Next, at step 295 e, documentidentification characteristic information is obtained. The documentidentification characteristic information is any information that mayuniquely identify the document that is being presented, such as a serialnumber in the case of currency bills, account number, check number inthe case of checks, bar code, or another encoded or encryptedidentifier. The characteristic information may be encoded information orit may not be. The characteristic information may be in the form ofnumbers, letters, and/or symbols.

The document identification characteristic information may be obtainedby obtaining a full image scan of the document or by scanning only aportion of the document. If a full image scan is obtained, thecharacteristic information may be obtained by using optical characterrecognition (OCR) software for identifying the characters printed in thecharacter information fields of the documents. For example, if thecharacter information is the serial number, the OCR may search the fullimage for a serial number and then extract the serial number once thefield is located.

The document identification characteristic information is then used toassociate the document being input into the device with the customerdepositing the documents. This is done by an associating means, such asa first computer (FIG. 4), a controller, or a memory. The associatingmeans may link the document to the customer by tying the characteristicinformation to the customer identifier. For example, if thecharacteristic information is obtained via image scanning, the customeridentifier could be tagged onto the image. Alternatively, thecharacteristic information can be stored in a memory in a file dedicatedto the customer. This way, someone searching the memory for the itemwould see that it is stored under a specific customer's identifier.Other methods for linking the customer and the document being depositedare also contemplated.

For retail customers, the customer identifier may identify a particularstore, branch number, or other division, such as checker, cashier, ordepartment number. The customer identifier may be a document that isable to be scanned and used as a divider when the retail customer bringsin the deposit. For example, a retail store may have five cashiers andmay desire to know if a particular cashier is accepting counterfeits.The dividers, or customer identifiers, would be placed between thedeposits of the different cashiers. The dividers would be scanned,triggering the device to tag the following images with certain numbersor identifiers. The scanning device would tag all of the followingdocuments with the identifier until the next divider was encountered.This enables retail stores to pinpoint locations (or even times orpeople) that are accepting counterfeits.

Next, in some embodiments, the method proceeds to step 297 e, where thedocument identification characteristic information is stored in amemory. It may be stored as an image file or as a data file. A processormay also be included that is able to utilize the information stored inthe memory to determine the customer who tendered the document fordeposit. This may be done in the manner described above in reference tostep 296 e.

Finally, at step 298 e, the device is able to subsequently identify thecustomer from whom the document was received. This may also be done byutilizing a tagged image or by sorting the images by customer andstoring the information in that manner. Any other method that may linkthe customer to the document may also be utilized.

FIG. 4 a is another embodiment of the present invention, and depicts ablock diagram of a document processing system 400. The documentprocessing system 400 includes a document scanning device 410, which iscapable of receiving currency bills. The document scanning device 410 ofFIG. 4 a may be, for example, the document scanning device 100 of FIGS.1–3. Likewise, the document scanning device 410 may be a documentscanning device 500 described below in connection with FIG. 5.

The document scanning device 410 is connected via a communication link420 to a first computer 430. The first computer 430 can be any type ofcomputer, such as a personal computer, a server, part of a LAN, or amainframe. The communication link 420 can be any link used for data,voice, or video communications that is known in the art, such as atelephone line or a wireless network. The communication link 420 may beover a private line or a public line. In some embodiments, the documentscanning device 410 may be connected to the first computer 430 via theinternet. Alternatively, the communication link 420 may be over anotherform of media, such as a radio or microwave link. The first computer 430may be located in the same place as the document scanning device 410 orit may be in a location remote, or separate, from the document scanningdevice 410. For example, it is contemplated that the document scanningdevice 410 is located at a branch of the bank, while the first computer430 is located at the main office or processing center of the bank. Insome embodiments, the individual document scanning device 410 may belinked to each other via the communication link 420.

In one embodiment, currency bills or other documents are fed into thedocument scanning device 410 for deposit into a customer's account. Thefirst computer 430 is a part of the banking system at a financialinstitution that holds the customer's account. The first computer 430 isadapted to credit the customer's account for the amount of a deposit.Before crediting the account, currency bills are scanned by the documentscanning device 410. A full image or an image of a portion of one sideof a deposit bill or bills may then be obtained. As illustrated in FIGS.1–3, the document scanning device 410 may be similar to the documentscanning device 100 and, therefore, may be used to check for counterfeitnotes.

In another embodiment, the document scanning device 410 merely scans thecurrency bills and the first computer 430 authenticates the currencybills, as described below. The images may be transferred via thecommunication link 420 to the first computer 430, which may be locatedat a bank. The first computer 430 may then use the stored images toprocess information (e.g., credit the customer's account, updatecustomer's account with the number of counterfeits flagged). The firstcomputer 430 may run the serial number of the currency bills through adatabase or a memory to check for counterfeit serial numbers. If a matchis found, the suspect bill may be rejected and the amount of the suspectbill debited from the customer's account. Alternatively, the bank maynot wish to debit the customer's account every time a counterfeit isfound, instead only debiting the account for repeat offenders or forbills over a certain dollar amount. The first computer 430 may alsocreate a chart for law enforcement personnel of who attempted to depositthe suspect bills.

In another embodiment, the first computer 430 may store the images ofall deposited currency bills to aid in reconciling discrepancies thatmay arise at a later date. For example, if a deposited currency bill islater found to be counterfeit using any variety of counterfeitdetectors, the bank can track that currency bill to the customer thatdeposited the counterfeit bill. Currently, once a bill is deposited intoa financial account (or mixed with any other bills), there is no way fora bank to track the bill. If a bill is later determined to becounterfeit, the bank cannot track the bill to the customer thatdeposited the counterfeit bill and the bank must, therefore, bear theloss.

According to some embodiments, the system scans and stores the image ofall currency bills and/or all documents associated with a transaction. Abenefit of such a system is if a customer disputes the amount of adeposit, because of the system, the bank can easily obtain the scannedimages of every document deposited to verify whether the amount creditedto the customer's account was correct. In these embodiments, it iscontemplated that the memory may be located in the scanning device 410,or it may be located in the first computer 430 or at both locations.

In another alternative embodiment, the first computer 430 may be linkedvia a telephone line or other communication link 440 to a secondcomputer 450, which may be a customer's computer, such as a homecomputer or a computer located at a retail store or an office. Thesecond computer 450 may also be a computer at another bank or financialinstitution. The communication link 440 may be over a public line, aprivate line, or it may be a wireless link. In this embodiment, theimages of documents associated with a transaction are forwarded to thecustomer as a receipt. According to some embodiments, the first andsecond computers 430, 450 may be linked via the internet. For example,using the internet, a bank may e-mail the information related to atransaction, including, for example, the images of the scanned documentsto a customer's computer. In another embodiment, the images aredownloaded onto a CD, a disk, a tape, or other storage media by the bankand forwarded to the customer. This may be done at the document scanningdevice 410 at the time of deposit, or it may be done later at the bankand the CD, disk, tape, or other storage media may be sent to thecustomer via regular mail. In both of these embodiments, the documentscanning device 410 is useful because it provides the customer with adetailed record of the transaction shortly after the transaction occurs.The document scanning device 410 is also beneficial since it stores theserial numbers, which may useful for tracking currency bills as theymove through the system. Another benefit of the present invention is theusefulness in locating counterfeit bills throughout a region. Thevarious financial institutions in a given region, for example SanFrancisco or the United States, may all use the same database having thecounterfeit serial numbers and/or other counterfeit billidentifications, such as plate numbers and city codes. This way, thefinancial institutions within the region benefit whenever one financialinstitution discovers a new counterfeit.

In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4 a, a plurality of documentscanning devices 410 may be connected in a “hub and spokes” networkarchitecture as is known in the art. This is illustrated by a pluralityof document scanning devices 410 shown in phantom. All of the documentscanning devices 410 are linked via the communication links 420 to thefirst computer 430. Likewise, other network architectures may be used.In order to prevent congestion, an image buffer (not shown) on eachdocument scanning device may store data until polled by the controlleror the first computer.

Turning now to FIG. 4 b, an embodiment is illustrated where the secondcomputer 450 is also in communication with a plurality of the documentscanning devices 410. In this embodiment, the first and second computers430, 450, respectively, are also in communication and can shareinformation with each other. In this embodiment, the second computer 450may be at another bank and may be connected via the communication links420 to the separate document scanning devices 410. In this embodiment,the second computer 450 would transmit information, such as updatedserial numbers, to the document scanning devices 410 and to the firstcomputer 430. The first computer 430 would then transmit the informationto the document scanning devices 410 in its network. Alternatively, thesecond computer 450 could communicate directly with all of the scanningdevices and do the updating. Even if the second computer 450 is not abank computer or server, it may still have access to the scanningdevices. Some banks may allow their customers to have access to thememory in the document scanning devices 410 to view images that weredeposited to or drawn on the customer's account at the bank.

Another embodiment is a pyramid structure, depicted in FIG. 4 c. In thisembodiment, document scanning devices 410 a are connected viacommunication links 420 a to a first computer 430 a. Another set ofdocument scanning devices 410 b are connected via communication links420 b to another first computer 430 b. The two first computers 430 a,430 b are then each linked via the communication links 440 a to a secondcomputer 450 a which is then in direct communication, via anothercommunication link 460 a, with a third computer 470 a. Other documentscanning devices 410 c, 410 d, first computers 430 c, 430 d, and secondcomputer 450 b are arranged in a similar fashion. As in the otherembodiments, all of the scanning devices 410 a, 410 b, 410 c, 410 d maybe linked together, or only the scanning devices sharing a same firstcomputer may be linked. Similarly, the first computers may be linkedtogether as may the second computers.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a block diagram of one embodiment of thedocument scanning device 500, such as the document scanning device 410of FIG. 4 a is now described. As discussed earlier, the documentscanning device 410 may also operate similar to the document scanningdevice 100 of FIGS. 1–3. In this embodiment, a currency bill 535 isplaced into a document scanning device 500 through an input receptacle510, which may be a document receiving opening or receptacle of thedocument scanning device 500. A transport mechanism 520 moves thecurrency bill 535 past an image scanner 540 and possibly past adiscrimination and authentication device 580 (if one is present) to anoutput receptacle 530.

The image scanner 540 and the transport mechanism 520 are electronicallycoupled to a controller 550. The controller 550 controls the imagescanner 540, creates image files, and controls the transport mechanism520. Once directed by the controller 550, the transport mechanism 520transports the currency bill 535 from the input receptacle 510 past theimage scanner 540.

Referring now also to FIGS. 6 and 7, the transport mechanism 520transports the currency bill 535 in a direction that is perpendicular toa longer edge of the currency bill 535, as shown in FIG. 6. Stateddifferently, a long edge of the currency bill is the leading edge. Inother embodiments, the transport mechanism 520 transports the currencybill 535 in a direction that is parallel to a longer edge of thecurrency bill 535, as shown in FIG. 7. Stated another way, a short edgeof the currency bill is the leading edge. In either embodiment, once thetransport mechanism 520 moves the currency bill 535 past the imagescanner 540, the controller 550 instructs the image scanner 540 to scanthe currency bill 535, thereby obtaining an image. The image may be ofone or both sides of the currency bill. The image scanner 540 mayoperate the same as the image scanner discussed in reference to FIGS.1–3.

Next, the transport mechanism 520 may transport the currency bill 535past the discrimination and authentication unit 580. The discriminationand authentication unit 580 may be of the type described in U.S. Pat.No. 5,815,592, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety. The discrimination and authentication unit 580 authenticatesthe currency bill 535 and may determine the denomination of the bill.Also, in some embodiments, if the discrimination and authentication unit580 determines that a currency bill is suspect, the discrimination andauthentication unit 580 may transmit the serial number of the suspectbill to a memory 560 so the new serial number is added to the list. Withother documents, such as checks, the discrimination and authenticationunit 580 may capture information such as the check amount, accountnumber, bank number, or check number. Alternatively, this informationmay be captured by the image scanner 540.

There are multiple reasons why the discrimination and authenticationunit 580 may be included even though the controller 550 and/or the firstcomputer 430 may be authenticating the bills by their serial numbers.First, if the first computer 430 is checking the serial numbers, thismay not be done until a later time. Using the discrimination andauthentication unit 580 may catch some counterfeit bills before theimages are sent to the first computer 430. Second, it is a good doublecheck to ensure the accuracy of the serial number method. Even if a billpasses the serial number test, it may still be a counterfeit.Accordingly, the discrimination and authentication unit 580 may performalternative authentication tests, such as magnetic, ultraviolet,fluorescent tests, etc., as are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,640,463,5,790,697, and 5,815,592, which are incorporated herein by reference intheir entireties.

In another embodiment, the discrimination and authentication unit 580may not be included. In such embodiments, the currency bill 535 istransported past the image scanner 540 and to the output receptacle 530.

In another embodiment of the document scanning device 500, a printer 545may be included in the document scanning device 500. The printer 545 mayperform a variety of functions. The printer 545 may be used to print areceipt reflecting the deposit amount for the customer. In otherembodiments, the printer 545 may be used to print a copy of the scannedimages for the customer's records. The controller 550 controls theoperation of the printer 545.

The controller 550 also controls the operation of the memory 560. Thememory 560 may be used to store the image files of the scanned currencybill 535. The memory 560 may also be used to store a list of counterfeitserial numbers, as discussed above. In some embodiments, the memory 560may be located in the first computer 430 or a database coupled to thefirst computer 430. During operation, the controller 550 may sendinstructions to the memory 560 to store certain image files. Also, thecontroller 550 may send instructions to retrieve existing files from thememory 560.

According to some alternative embodiments, two control panels 570, 590may be connected to the controller 550. The control panels 570, 590 maybe used to display information to a customer and/or operator. Forexample, if a counterfeit bill is discovered, the control panels 570,590 may alert the customer or operator to the discovery by flashing analert button. The control panels 570, 590 may also be adapted to displayinformation to the customer or operator, such as the denomination of thebill that was found to be counterfeit. The control panels 570, 590 mayalso be used to display deposit information if the document processingsystem is being used to deposit funds. In some embodiments, the controlpanels 570, 590 could display the whole image of the check or currencybill for decision making purposes. For example, if a check is beingdetermined as a forgery, the operator may wish to view the image andoverride the determination. Also, in some embodiments, the controlpanels 570, 590 may only display portions of the image. If a check isdetermined to have a forged signature, the operator may wish to viewonly the signature portion of the check and compare the signature on theimage with a signature record. In some embodiments, the control panels570, 590 may allow the operator to view the image of the signature andthe signature record side by side for comparison purposes.

In another embodiment, the control panels 570, 590 are used by thecustomer or operator to input information into the document scanningdevice 500. For example, if a counterfeit bill is discovered and thedocument scanning device 500 halts operation, once the counterfeit billis removed, the customer or operator may press a button on one of thecontrol panels 570, 590 to restart the document scanning device 500. Thecontrol panels 570, 590 may also be used to accept instructions on billswhose images are unreadable by the OCR. For example, an image taken of acurrency bill may be of such poor quality because the bill is dirty orworn that the serial number is unreadable. In one embodiment, thecontrol panels 570, 590 are able to accept input indicating the serialnumber and/or denomination of the bill from the customer or operatorregarding the unreadable information. The control panels 570, 590 may beinput devices such as a numeric keypad, a standard keyboard, a touchscreen, and/or denomination keys to allow the customer or operator toenter information into the document scanning device 500. Likewise, thecontrol panels 570, 590 may be used to enter other information regardinga transaction or document such as a customer account number.Alternatively or additionally, other input devices may be employed, suchas a card reader. In such embodiments, the identity of the customermaking a deposit and/or the number of the account to which a deposit isto be made may be input to the system via the use of a card reader.

Finally, the controller 550 may be linked to the communication link 420,described in FIG. 4 a, to communicate and receive information from thefirst computer 430. The controller 550 may transmit, via thecommunication link 420, information to and/or from the first computer,such as image files of all the scanned documents, the image files of thecounterfeit documents, and/or information relating to the amount of thedeposit.

Turning now to FIG. 8, one example of an arrangement of an image scanner840 for use in the above-described embodiments of the present inventionwill be described. A currency bill 835 having two sides is inserted intothe document scanning device 500 (FIG. 5) at a position 800. In theembodiment of FIG. 8, the image scanner 840 is adapted to scan bothsides of the currency bill 835. As will be described, an upper side ofthe bill 835 is scanned at a position 810, and the second or lower sideof the currency bill 835 is scanned at a position 860. Oftentimes, thecurrency bill 835 may contain valuable information on both sides, thusscanning the image of both sides can be useful. For example, in the caseof a U.S. currency bill, the first side may contain a serial number andthe second side contains plate information, which may also be useful indetermining counterfeits.

After the currency bill 835 is inserted into the document scanningdevice 500, the currency bill 835 is transported past a scanningarrangement by the transport mechanism 520 (FIG. 5). When the currencybill 835 moves into the position 810, the currency bill 835 isilluminated by a light source 805. The image of one of the first orsecond sides of the document travels along a first path 820 to a mirror830. The image is then reflected by the mirror 830 along a second path825 to a scanhead 850, where the image is stored. The scanhead 850 maybe rotatable, as shown, or it may be fixed in position. Thus, one sideof the currency bill 835 is imaged using reflection techniques. Thecurrency bill 835 then moves into the position 860 where the image ofthe other of the first and second sides of the currency bill 835 isscanned by the scanhead 850. Since this embodiment only utilizes onescanhead, it is more cost efficient than other scanning devices whichuse two or more scanheads.

Referring now to FIG. 9, an image scanner 905 according to anotherembodiment of the present invention is shown. According to theembodiment of FIG. 9, the front and back surfaces of a currency bill 935are scanned by scanheads 900, 910 and the images may be processed intovideo image data by electronic circuitry. The scanheads 900, 910 may becharge coupled scanner arrays and generate a sequence of analog signalsrepresenting light and dark images defining the image on the currencybill 935. The scanheads 900, 910 may be arranged for simultaneouslyscanning both the front and back of the currency bill 935 and areconnected respectively to analog-to-digital converters 920, 930 whichconvert the analog values into discrete binary gray scale values of, forexample, 256 gray scale levels. Alternatively, the scanheads 900, 910may be arranged in an offset or non-overlapping manner. For example, anon-overlapping arrangement may be useful in isolating light detected byeach scanhead. The scanheads 900, 910 may be capable of obtaining imagesof varying resolutions. The particular resolution chosen, which can bevaried by the operator, is selected based on the type of document beingscanned, as is known in the art.

According to an embodiment, the high resolution gray scale image datafrom the analog-to-digital converters 920, 930 is directed to an imagedata preprocessor 940 in which the data may be enhanced and smoothed andwhich serves to locate the edges of successive documents. Irrelevantdata between documents may then be discarded. If the documents areslightly skewed, the image data preprocessor 940 can also performrotation on the image data to facilitate subsequent processing.

The image data may be monitored for unacceptable image quality by animage quality unit 950. For example, the image quality unit 950 maymonitor the distribution of gray scale values in the image data andcreate a histogram. As is well known in the art, acceptable qualityimages have a distribution of gray scale values within certainprescribed limits. If the gray scale distribution of the histogram fallsoutside these limits, this is indicative of poor image quality and anerror condition may be generated.

The image data is transmitted from the image quality unit 950 to animage processor 960. The image processor 960 may add items to the imageor to the image file. For example, if a document bearing only asignature is scanned, the image processor 960 may add a transactionamount, a payee, and/or other information as needed to the image. In oneembodiment, the image processor 960 may add a deposit date and accountnumber to the image file. As is known in the art, OCR software can beused to scan specified fields on the faces of the document. For example,when processing currency bills, the OCR software may locate the serialnumber or the number printed in each of the corners. If checks are beingscanned, the OCR software may locate the ABA number, account number, andcheck number. The OCR then exports that information in a specifiedmanner. As is known in the art, a straight coordinate system ordimension system is used where known dimensions of the box are used tolocate the field.

The image processor 960 may be programmed to locate fields for varioustypes of documents. In scanning currency, the image processor 960 firstidentifies the type of currency, for example, U.S. bank notes, byscanning specified portions of the currency. Then, based on the outcomeof the previous step, certain fields of interest are located, and theinformation is stored for use by the system. For U.S. currency bills,the fields of interest may include the dollar amount, serial number,issuing Federal Reserve Bank, and signatories. In processing checks, thefields of interest may be the ABA number, account number, check number,amount, signature, and payee. The image processor 960 may also compressthe image data, as is known in the art, in preparation for transmissionto an outside location and/or storage.

The amount of image data per document may vary depending on theefficiency of the data compression and reduction for that particulardocument. To insure that no data is lost in the event that the volume ofimage data temporarily exceeds the transfer capacity of a data channel980, such as a high-speed data channel, a prechannel buffer 970 isinterposed prior to the data channel 980, which is connected to acontroller 990. The capacity of the prechannel buffer 970 is continuallymonitored by the controller 990 so that appropriate action may be takenif the buffer becomes overloaded. The compressed video image data isreceived by the controller 990 over, for example, the high-speed datachannel 980 and is initially routed to temporary storage. The prechannelbuffer 970 is preferably of a size capable of storing image data from atleast several batches or runs of currency bills, each batch or runcontaining several currency bills. The number of batches the prechannelbuffer 970 can handle is dependent on the size and memory of the buffer.The size of the buffer can be changed to suit the needs of the operatorof the scanning device. The prechannel buffer 970 may also be a memorystorage device that holds the images of the scanned documents until thecontroller is ready to transmit them. The controller 990 in the documentscanning device 410 directs the image data preprocessor 940 to performthe functions of analyzing the data. Alternatively, as discussed above,analysis of the data can occur at an office computer or at a personalcomputer attached to the system.

Other scanning modules and methods can be used in place of or inaddition to the ones described above. These include CCD array systems,multi-cell arrays, contact image sensing, CMOS image sensors, and otherwell-known scanning techniques. Examples of these techniques and devicesare described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,023,782, 5,237,158, 5,187,750, and4,205,780, all of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirentireties. The scanning module can also be a color image scanner suchas the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,335,292, which is incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety.

Referring now to FIG. 10 a, an image file 1000 according to oneembodiment is shown. The image file 1000 comprises several parts. Afirst image section 1010 represents one side of the document scanned.The image is a collection of data and is represented here pictorially soas to be more easily explained and understood. In the currency billsample shown in FIG. 10, the first image section 1010 is the front sideof the document scanned, namely, a one dollar bill. Similarly, a secondimage section 1020 comprises data representing the reverse side of thedocument, in this case, the back side of the currency bill. On both thefirst and second image sections 1010, 1020 of the currency bill, thereis information that may be important to have stored separately in theimage file for cross-referencing or tracking purposes. For example, thefront side of the one dollar bill includes the serial number and theback side includes a plate number. Both of these may be important toinclude in the image file and may be cross-referenced for sortingpurposes.

As discussed above, for reasons related to bill tracking and counterfeitdetection, it may be important to know the serial number of the currencybill. Therefore, a serial number 1030 is extracted from the bill andstored in a data portion 1030 a of the image file. Once the serialnumber of a bill is obtained, the serial number can be useful intracking the distribution of the counterfeit bill. It may also be usedto help a government official track the whereabouts of criminals andfollow currency bills that are being laundered.

The image file 1000 may also include an account number field 1080 a thatis associated with the currency bill. The account number may be added tothe image file by the document scanning system 410 or by the firstcomputer 430 (FIG. 4 a). The account number field 1080 a refers to theaccount into which the currency bill is deposited. This allows someoneviewing the image file to know what account obtained credit for thebill. For example, if the bill was deposited and later discovered to becounterfeit, by viewing the image file, the user could see what accountwas credited and could then take the appropriate action against theaccount (flag the account or debit the account for the funds).

In some embodiments, it may also be desired to extract signatoryinformation such as a Treasurer's signature 1039 and a signature of theSecretary of Treasury 1040. Likewise, in some embodiments, a dollaramount information 1050, a series information 1060, and the FederalReserve bank number, a number portion 1065, a letter portion 1067, and aplate number 1070 on the backside of a currency bill 1020, may beextracted. All of these fields may be used for cross-referencing theserial number with the currency bill for purposes of determiningcounterfeit bills. For example, the serial number of the bill may berelated to the series. If these items do not match, then the bill is acounterfeit. Also, in certain series, the Federal Reserve bank number1065, 1067 may be in different locations. In some series, the letterportion 1067 is in a seal. In other series, the number portion 1065 isright next to the letter portion 1067, with neither being in the seal.The signatory information 1039, 1040, the dollar amount information1050, the series information 1060, the Federal Reserve Bank number 1065,1067, a front plate number 1068, a print order code 1069, and the backplate number 1070 may all be extracted and inserted into the appropriatefields 1039 a, 1040 a, 1050 a, 1060 a, 1065 a, 1067 a, 1068 a, 1069 a,1070 a, respectively, in the image file. The software is able to beupdated to handle these changes in any fields that change over time.

Other fields may also be included in alternative embodiments, such as afield relating to the issuing federal reserve bank, the country oforigin (if multiple country currencies are accepted), and others. It isalso contemplated that foreign currency may have other usefulinformation on the bill such as other security measures which it may beuseful to extract from the image of the bill. One example would be thesize of the currency bill. In many foreign countries, the size of thecurrency bill varies with denomination. As a preliminary measure, thesize of the currency bill may be measured to ensure that the bill is theappropriate size.

In other embodiments, the locations of certain items may be different.For example, in the new U.S. series, the picture may be larger oroff-center. Also, some of the extracted information may be located in adifferent position.

Turning now to FIG. 10 b, an image of a check is depicted. A first imagesection 1105 represents one side of a scanned check. The image is acollection of encoded data and is represented here pictorially so as tobe readily understandable to those skilled in the art. In the checksample shown in FIG. 10 b, both sides of the check have been scanned. Inother embodiments, it may be desired to scan only one side. In theembodiment illustrated, the first image section 1105 is the front sideof the scanned check. Similarly, a second image section 1110 comprisesdata representing the reverse side of the document, in this case, theback side of the check. An area 1115 a is the MICR data scanned and isextracted from the full image scan and inserted into a MICR field 1115b. The MICR information on the check includes the ABA number, payor'schecking account number, check number, and may include the dollar amountof the check.

Areas 1115 c, 1115 d represent, respectively, the ABA number and controlinformation. The ABA number and control information is needed so thatthe image file can be transmitted among financial institutions. The ABAnumber is a number that corresponds to the bank that issued the check.In other words, the bank to which the image file belongs can easily berecognized by an operator. The areas 1115 c, 1115 d may be extractedfrom the area 1115 a or from the MICR encoding on the check. The numbersillustrated are used as examples and are not meant to represent theexact digits or number of digits used.

Also taken from the MICR encoding line on the check is a field 1115 e,which contains the account number for the check extracted from the imageof the check. The account number allows an operator to know whichaccount was debited for the funds.

To further aid the operator in recognizing the account, anidentification field 1120 b may be included in the image file and maycontain data indicating the name and address of the owner of theaccount. This information is taken from the identification field 1120 aon the image file. Normally, this information is on the upper left sideof the check and usually includes at least the name of the owner of theaccount, and may include address and telephone information.

On the written portion of the check, an amount of transaction isindicated in an amount box 1130 a. This information may be read from theimage and inserted into an amount field 1130 b. Other writteninformation, such as a payee name 1140 a, may also be extracted from thefull image and added into a field 1140 b. A check number 1150 a may beextracted and added into a field 1150 b to provide a clearer indicationof the check number. It should be recognized that the fields illustratedare not inclusive of all possible fields and types of information whichcan be stored in an image file 1100. Indeed, other types of informationcan be stored as can pointers to other files having, for example,further information relating to the customer. In some cases, it may alsobe useful to read the memo line of the check. In addition, it iscontemplated that an operator may fill in some of these fields. Forexample, in an embodiment of the present invention that only requiresthe customer to sign the document, the payee field and amount field maybe added to the image before it is processed. The format of the file isstandardized for ease of processing, i.e., using .tif, .bmp, .pdf, .gif,or .jpg. This allows other software to process the information in imagefiles for use by the merchant or financial institution.

FIGS. 11 and 12 depict a compact document scanning device 5010 accordingto one embodiment of the present invention. The compact documentscanning device 5010 illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12 is described andillustrated in more detail in U.S. Pat. No. 5,687,963, which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The device of thispatent is modified to include an image scanner as described in FIGS. 8and 9. Documents are fed one by one from a stack of documents placed inan input receptacle 5309 onto a transport mechanism. The transportmechanism includes a transport plate or guide plate 5240 for guiding adocument to an output receptacle 5017. Before reaching the outputreceptacle 5017, the document can be, for example, evaluated, analyzed,counted, and/or otherwise processed by a full image scanning module5250. In one embodiment of the compact document scanning device 5010,documents are transported, scanned, and identified at a rate of betweenabout 300 to about 400 documents per minute. In one embodiment of thecompact document scanning device 5010, documents are transported,scanned, and identified at a rate in excess of 600 documents per minute.In another embodiment, documents such as checks or currency bills aretransported, scanned, and identified at a rate in excess of 800 bills ordocuments per minute. In yet another embodiment, documents such aschecks or currency bills are transported, scanned, and identified at arate in excess of 1000 bills or documents per minute. In anotherembodiment, documents are transported, scanned, and identified at a ratein excess of 1200 bills per minute. A scanning device of anotherembodiment transports documents at a rate in excess of 1500 bills perminute.

The compact document scanning device 5010 in FIG. 11 has a touch paneldisplay 5061 in one embodiment of the present invention which displays“functional” keys when appropriate. The touch panel display 5061simplifies the operation of the compact document processing system 5010.Alternatively or additionally, physical keys or buttons may be employed.For example, a ten key keypad may be utilized.

A pair of driven stacking wheels 5212, 5213 are located in the outputreceptacle 5017 and come into contact with the documents as thedocuments are transported into the output receptacle 5017. The stackingwheels 5212, 5213 are supported for rotational movement about respectiveshafts 5115 journalled on a rigid frame and driven by a motor (notshown). Flexible blades of the driven stacking wheels 5212, 5213 deliverthe documents onto a forward end of a stacker plate 5214.

According to one embodiment, the compact document scanning device 5010is compact, having a height (H₁) of about 9½ to 12½ inches, a width (W₁)of about 11 to 15 inches, and a depth (D₁) of about 12 to 16 inches.

FIGS. 13 and 14 depict an exterior perspective view and a sidecross-sectional view of a multi-pocket compact document scanning device6010. The process for carrying documents through the system is the sameas discussed above, except that the processing system has two outputreceptacles 6217 a, 6217 b. In this embodiment, a diverter 6260 directsthe documents to either the first or second output receptacle 6217 a,6217 b. When the diverter 6260 is in a lower position, documents aredirected to the first output receptacle 6217 a. When the diverter 6260is in an upper position, documents proceed in the direction of thesecond output receptacle 6217 b. Details of multiple output receptaclesand devices are described in International Publication No. WO 97/45810,which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

According to one embodiment, the document scanning device 6010 iscompact, having a height (H₂) of about 17½ inches, a width (W₂) of about13½ inches, and a depth (D₂) of about 15 inches. According to anotherembodiment, the document scanning device has dimensions of a height (H₂)of about 20 inches, a width (W₂) of about 15 inches, and a depth (D₂) ofabout 18 inches. The document scanning device 6010 may be rested on atabletop. According to some two pocket embodiments, counterfeitdocuments may be off-sorted without having to stop the device. Also,they may be used in sorting between different types of documents,denominations, or series.

Referring now to FIG. 15, the operation of a document processing systemwill be described. First, at step 1500, a customer or operator inserts acurrency deposit into a document scanning device of the documentprocessing system. The currency deposit may be inserted one at a time orit may be in a stack. Next, at step 1510, the currency bills aretransported one by one, either parallel to a long dimension orperpendicular to a long dimension, past an image scanner as describedabove. The image scanner then obtains a full image of the currency billat step 1520.

Once the full image of the currency bill is obtained, the methodproceeds to step 1530 where particular fields may be extracted from theimage of the currency bill. The particular fields extracted may includethe serial number, signatories, denomination of the currency bill,series and/or issuing Federal Reserve Bank, to name a few. At step 1540,the currency bill is then discriminated. This may be done by adiscrimination and authentication unit as described in FIG. 5, or theamount of the bill may be determined from fields that are extracted fromthe image of the bill at step 1530.

In this embodiment, after denomination occurs, the bill is then testedat step 1550 to determine whether the bill is genuine or a counterfeit.Some counterfeiting tests include measuring light emitted from the bill(visible, ultraviolet, and infrared), testing for watermarks, holograms,magnetics, and security threads, and testing image quality. Anothermethod is to compare the serial number that is extracted from the imageof the currency bill to a list of serial numbers stored in a memory. Theserial numbers stored in the memory are serial numbers which have beenused on counterfeit currency bills. Since counterfeiters often use thesame serial numbers repeatedly, a currency bill having a serial numberthat matches the counterfeit list, may be a counterfeit bill.

If the serial number of the scanned bill matches a serial number on thelist and/or the currency bill does not pass the other authenticitytests, then, at step 1555, the scanning device determines if the billwas rejected because of a counterfeit serial number. If this is thecase, the process next moves to step 1565 and the bill is rejected,ending the process. If it was not, the scanning device, at step 1560,transmits the serial number of the currency bill to the database toupdate the database. For example, if the currency bill was determined tobe counterfeit based on UV tests, it is possible that the serial numbermay be used with other counterfeits. Therefore, the serial number isadded to the counterfeit database. The bill is then rejected at step1565 and the process ends.

After the scanned currency bill is determined to be counterfeit, it isthen rejected by the document processing system at step 1560. The imageof the rejected bill may be tagged with the reason for the rejection. Byutilizing tagging, a person viewing an image at a later date would knowwhy the currency bill was rejected. The currency bill may be off-sortedby being sorted into a second output receptacle. In other embodiments,the document processing system may halt operation while an operatorremoves the suspect bill from an output receptacle. It is alsocontemplated that the operator may be informed via the display of thepresence of a suspect bill and its characteristics (i.e., the serialnumber, whole image of bill). In another embodiment, the presence of acounterfeit bill may also cause the document processing system to signalthe proper authorities. The operator may decide, upon inspection of thebill, that the bill is genuine and should be accepted. The operator maythen override the decision of the scanning device to reject the bill.Alternatively, the operator may decide that further testing is requiredand may accept the bill temporarily or on a “hold” basis. If thecurrency bill is accepted as a “hold,” the funds would not becomeavailable for withdrawal until the bill was verified as genuine.

If the serial number of the scanned bill does not match the serialnumbers on the list and it passes all other counterfeit tests, thedocument processing system proceeds to step 1570. The value of thecurrency bill is then added to the value of the other non-suspectcurrency bills. Next, the document processing system may then transmitthe image file (which may contain the images, image data, or both) tothe bank where the customer's account is held (step 1580). The bank thencredits the customer's account for the amount of the deposit at step1590. This process is then repeated until all of the bills inserted atstep 1500 have been processed. In another embodiment, the scanningdevice may store the images until all the currency bills have beenscanned and transmit all the images obtained during a singletransaction. Alternatively, the images may be stored for a predeterminedamount of time or until a memory in the processing system is full. Theimages would then be transmitted in batches to the bank.

In FIG. 16, a method of how another embodiment of the present inventionworks is functionally illustrated. First, at step 1600, a customer oroperator inserts a stack of documents into the document scanning devicefor deposit into a customer's financial account. In one embodiment, thedocument scanning device has two input receptacles, one for currency andone for other documents, such as checks. In another embodiment, thedocument scanning device has only one input receptacle for alldocuments. If the document scanning device has only one inputreceptacle, as a preliminary step, the document scanning device may sortthe checks from the currency.

Next, at step 1610, images of the checks are obtained. These may be fullimages or images of only relevant portions of the checks (e.g., accountnumber, routing number, courtesy amount field, legal amount field). Thedocument scanning device next extracts data to add to an image file atstep 1620. The image file may contain the image of the document (if afull image is obtained) and any of the extracted data. At step 1630, thedenomination of the scanned check is then obtained. The denomination maybe obtained by an authentication and denomination unit or by otherdenominating means discussed above. The document scanning device thensums the value of all the checks imaged (step 1640).

Next, the currency bills are imaged and data is extracted (steps 1650and 1660). The images may be full images of the currency bills or theymay be only images of parts of the currency bills. For example, theimages may only be of half a bill if that would provide adequateinformation to the bank and the customer. An image of half the currencybill would depict the serial number and the dollar amount.Alternatively, the image may be of any patch or a thin stripe of thecurrency bill. The image may also be a couple of parts put together,such as the serial number and the dollar amount. In some embodiments,the currency bills are denominated and then imaged while, in others, thecurrency bills may be imaged first and then denominated. The images andextracted data may be added to an image file as was done with checks. InFIG. 16, at step 1670, the currency bills are discriminated andauthenticated. This may be done by comparing the serial number of theimaged currency to a list of counterfeit serial numbers. Theauthenticating may be accomplished by other known methods, such as UVreflection techniques, infrared techniques, image quality, colorshifting ink, watermarks, holograms, magnetics, and security threadlocation.

The sum of the values of all the currency scanned is then obtained atstep 1690. Next, the document scanning device then transmits the sum ofthe imaged documents along with the check and the currency images to afirst computer at a bank where the customer's account is held (step1700). At step 1710, the computer then credits the customer's accountfor the amount of the deposit that is verified by the scanning device.Finally, at step 1720, the customer or person depositing the documentsis given an indication that the customer's account has been credited.The indication may be, for example, a printed, electronicallytransmitted, or downloaded receipt. The indication may also be a noticeon a screen of the document scanning device. Also, the indication mayinclude only the dollar amount or it may also include copies of theimages obtained. The images may be downloaded onto a disk or CD-ROMcoupled to the scanning device.

In another embodiment, the checks and currency bills are imaged as theyenter the device. Also, in some embodiments, the currency bills may bedenominated before the currency bills are imaged or before the currencyis authenticated. Also, in other embodiments, the currency bills may beonly denominated and not imaged, i.e., steps 1650 and 1660 may beeliminated.

To further aid in the understanding of the invention, three additionalspecific examples of the document scanning devices will be describedwith reference to FIGS. 17 a–19 b. FIG. 17 a is a flow chart for thefirst example depicted. At step 1750, a person approaches a scanningdevice. The person wants to deposit currency bills into a checkingaccount at Bank A. Next, at step 1755, the person indicates on thescanning device what he wants to do (deposit money) and where (accountnumber at Bank A). This may be similar to how a person would use astandard ATM, with the machine reading a card for certain information(bank name and account number) and the customer inputting otherinformation (what they want done and how much money).

Once the machine has the information, it may instruct the person toinsert the bills into an input receptacle (step 1760). In this example,the person has deposited ten currency bills totaling $141 (one fifty,three twenties, one ten, four fives, and one single). At step 1765, thebills are then transported one by one past an image scanner which scanseach bill as described above. An image file is created containing theimage of each currency bill and its serial number (step 1768). The billsare then denominated at step 1770. Serial numbers of the bills are thencompared to counterfeit serial numbers in a list (step 1775). In thisexample, none of the bills contain serial numbers that match the list ofcounterfeit serial numbers. Therefore, the $141 is credited to theperson's account at Bank A (step 1780). At step 1785, the image files ofthe currency bills are communicated to Bank A for storage. It is alsocontemplated that the denomination of the currency bills may bedetermined prior to or concurrently with the counterfeit testing.

Turning now to FIG. 17 b, an example depicting how a check may bedeposited is described. At step 1750 b, a customer approaches thescanning device. The person wants to deposit checks into a checkingaccount at Bank A. Next, at step 1755 b, the person indicates on thescanning device what he wants to do (deposit checks) and where (accountnumber at Bank A). This may be similar to how a person would use astandard ATM, with the machine reading a card for certain information(bank name and account number) and the customer inputting otherinformation (what they want done and how much).

Once the machine has the information, it may instruct the person toinsert the checks into an input receptacle (step 1760 b). In thisexample, the person has deposited four checks totaling $141 (one forsixty six dollars, one for fifty dollars, one for twenty dollars, andone for five dollars). At step 1765 b, the checks are then transportedone by one past an image scanner which scans each check as describedabove. An image file is created containing the image of each check (step1768 b). The amounts of the checks are then obtained by reading thecourtesy amount (CAR) and/or the legal amount at step 1770 b. The ABA,account and/or check numbers of the checks are then compared to theflagged numbers in the memory (step 1775 b). In this example, none ofthe data matches data in the memory. Therefore, the $141 is credited tothe person's account at Bank A (step 1780 b). At step 1785 b, the imagefiles of the checks are communicated to Bank A for storage. It is alsocontemplated that the denomination of the checks may be determined priorto or concurrently with the counterfeit testing.

FIG. 18 a illustrates a second example of how an embodiment of thepresent invention may work. The embodiment works the same as in FIG. 17a up to step 1770 but, in this example, two of the bills, a twenty and afive, have serial numbers that match serial numbers on the list ofcounterfeit serial numbers. In another embodiment, the two bills may beflagged as suspect because of failing other counterfeit tests, such as amagnetic or a thread test. In that scenario, the serial number of thecounterfeit bills may be extracted and forwarded to the database to beadded to the database (see, e.g., FIG. 18 b). At step 1800, the twentydollar bill and the five dollar bill are flagged or rejected as suspect.In this case, the scanning device, at step 1802, sums the value of thebills that do not match the counterfeit serial numbers, arriving at avalue of $116. In another embodiment, where the currency is denominatedfirst, the amount of the counterfeit bills may be subtracted from theamount already denominated. The account at Bank A is then credited inthe amount of $116 at step 1805. At step 1810, the person making thedeposit is told of the amount deposited and the reason why the amountwas less than indicated by the person. At step 1820, the scanning deviceupdates a counterfeit record of the person's account to indicate thatcounterfeit funds were detected. This allows Bank A to track theattempted deposit of counterfeit bills. Bank A may use this informationto more closely verify deposits by people who have attempted to depositnumerous counterfeit bills or they may use it to charge fees for thedetection and processing of counterfeit bills. The information may alsobe used to alert police to potential counterfeiters.

Turning now to FIG. 18 b, an alternative embodiment of the presentinvention is illustrated. At step 1775, the two serial numbers of thedeposited currency bills are compared to the serial numbers stored inthe memory. None of the currency bills have serial numbers that matchthe serial numbers stored in the memory. Next, at step 1799 b, othercounterfeit testing is performed, such as ultraviolet testing, infraredtesting, magnetic testing, thread testing, and/or image comparisontesting. Two of the bills fail this test, one of the twenty dollar billsand one of the five dollar bills. The two bills that failed the test areflagged as suspect at step 1800 b. The serial numbers of these bills arethen extracted and transmitted to the database at step 1801 b. Theseserial numbers will then be added to the database as serial numbersrelating to counterfeit bills and will be used in later testing. Thecustomer's account is then credited at step 1805 b for $116. Next, atstep 1810 b, the customer is informed as to the reason why the amountwas less. During this step, the image may also be tagged with the reasonfor the counterfeit label, i.e., the exact test the currency bill failedmay be indicated. Finally, at step 1820 b, the customer's records may beupdated for the reasons cited above.

FIG. 18 c illustrates another example of how an embodiment of thepresent invention may work when checks are deposited. Up until step 1775b, the process operates the same as in FIG. 17 b but, in this example,two of the checks, one worth twenty dollars and one worth five dollars,have check numbers that match check numbers on the list of suspect checknumbers. At step 1800 c, the check for twenty dollars and the check forfive dollars are flagged or rejected as suspect. In this case, thescanning device at step 1802 c sums the value of the checks that are notflagged, arriving at a value of $116. In another embodiment, where theamount of the checks are determined and summed first, the amount of theflagged checks may be subtracted from the amount already summed. Theaccount at Bank A is then credited in the amount of $116 at step 1805 c.At step 1810 c, the person making the deposit is told of the amountdeposited and the reason why the amount was less than indicated by theperson. At step 1820 c, the scanning device updates a suspect record ofthe person's account to indicate that suspect checks were detected. Thisallows Bank A to track the attempted deposit of bad checks. Bank A mayuse this information to more closely verify deposits by people who haveattempted to deposit numerous bad checks or they may use it to chargefees for the detection and processing of bad checks. The information mayalso be used to alert police to potential check kiters or forgerers.

FIG. 19 a is a flow chart of a third scenario demonstrating how thescanning system operates. In this example, the steps follow FIG. 17 athrough step 1785. As in the example of FIG. 17 a, the person depositsten bills for a total deposit of $141. None of the bills have a serialnumber matching a counterfeit number and the entire $141 is credited tothe person's account. After step 1785, the currency bills are removedfrom the document scanning device at step 1900. They are now transportedto Bank A for further verification and routing through the FederalReserve Bank system (step 1910).

During the further verification, the fifty dollar bill is discovered tobe a counterfeit (step 1920). At step 1930, Bank A runs the serialnumber and/or the denomination of the fifty dollar bill through aprocessor so as to discover who deposited the counterfeit bill. Theprocessor stores all the image files obtained by the scanning device.All fifty dollar bills containing the serial number are listed forreview by Bank A at step 1940. The files contain the image of thecurrency bill, serial number, denomination, date of deposit, and depositaccount. At step 1945, the processor inquires how many matches have beenmade. If only one image file is found, that customer's account isdebited for the amount of the counterfeit bill at step 1950. Theprocessor then proceeds to step 1970 described below.

If numerous images are found, the process proceeds to step 1960, wherethe time of deposit of the images are reviewed. Since banks oftenprocess the bills within a certain time frame, it may be known roughlyas to when the counterfeit bill was deposited into an account at Bank A.If Bank A can narrow the image files down to one account, they thendeduct the fifty dollar bill from the balance in the account. In otherembodiments, other data that is extracted from the currency bill may beused to find a match (see FIG. 10 a).

Next, at step 1970, Bank A then adds the serial number of the fiftydollar bill to the list of serial numbers that are associated withcounterfeit bills. In alternative embodiments, Bank A may choose not todeduct the amount of the counterfeit bill from the account. Bank A maychoose to bear the loss and instead put a watch on the account to checkfor other counterfeit bills. Bank A may also choose to only debitaccounts for counterfeit bills over a certain amount or after a certainnumber of occurrences.

Turning now to the depositing of checks, FIG. 19 b is a flow chart of athird scenario demonstrating how the scanning system operates inrelation to checks. In this example, the steps follow FIG. 17 b throughstep 1785 b. As in the example of FIG. 17 b, the person deposits fourchecks for a total deposit of $141. None of the checks were flagged aspotential forgeries or holds, and the entire $141 is credited to theperson's account. After step 1785 b, the checks are removed from thedocument scanning device at step 1900 b. They are now transported toBank A for further verification and routing through the Federal ReserveBank system (step 1910 b).

During the further verification, the fifty dollar check is discovered tobe a bad check (i.e., has a stop payment on it or is forged) (step1920). At step 1930 b, Bank A runs the ABA, account number, and/or checknumber of the check through a processor so as to discover who depositedthe counterfeit bill. The processor stores all the image files obtainedby the scanning device. The account to which the check was debited isfound and can be debited for the amount of the check (step 1940 b). Atstep 1950 b, the reason the check was bounced or returned may becommunicated to the database to update the files. This enables thesystem to flag similar checks for closer perusal when being deposited.The reason for the return may be noted in the database, so that if itwas a forgery, an operator may know to take a close look at thesignature.

Turning now to FIG. 20, an alternative embodiment of a document scanningdevice will be described. In this embodiment, a currency bill 2000 (or astack of currency bills 2000) is placed into a scanning system throughan input receptacle 2010, which may be a document receiving opening orreceptacle of the scanning system. A transport mechanism 2020 moves thecurrency bill 2000 past an image scanner 2040 and to an outputreceptacle 2030. In other embodiments, the output receptacle 2030 mayinclude exactly two output receptacles or a plurality of outputreceptacles. In the embodiments having two or a plurality of outputreceptacles 2030, one output receptacle may be used as an off-sort. Inother embodiments, one of the output receptacles may be used for aspecific kind of currency. If checks are run through this portion of thescanner, the output receptacles may be used to sort “on-us” from“transit” checks.

The image scanner 2040 and the transport mechanism 2020 areelectronically coupled to a controller 2050. The controller 2050controls the image scanner 2040, creates image files, and controls thetransport mechanism 2020. The image scanner 2040 operates the same asthe image scanner 540 described in FIG. 5. Images of the currency bill2000 are transmitted from the image scanner 2040 to a memory 2060.

In this embodiment, the scanning system also includes a second inputreceptacle 2015 adapted to receive checks. This is useful for situationswhere a customer is depositing both checks and currency bills. In thissystem, a second transport mechanism 2025 transports checks 2005 past asecond image scanner 2045 and to an output receptacle 2035. In otherembodiments, the output receptacle 2035 may include exactly two outputreceptacles or a plurality of output receptacles. In the embodimentshaving two or a plurality of output receptacles 2035, one outputreceptacle may be used as an off-sort. In other embodiments, one of theoutput receptacles may be used for a specific kind of currency. Ifchecks are run through this portion of the scanner, the outputreceptacles may be used to sort “on-us” from “transit” checks.

The second image scanner 2045 is controlled by the controller 2050 andobtains full images of the checks. An image file is then created havingthe full image of the check, as well as any extracted data. Thecontroller 2050 may extract certain fields from the image of the checkto add to the image file, such as the payee, the account number, theamount in the courtesy amount field (CAR), and/or the amount in thelegal amount field (LAR). The image file is then transmitted to a memory2060 that operates as described with reference to FIG. 16.

The controller 2050 also controls two control panels 2070, 2090. Thecontrol panels operate in the same manner as the control panels 570, 590in FIG. 5.

Turning now to FIG. 21, another embodiment of a document scanning devicehaving two input receptacles is illustrated. In this embodiment, acurrency bill 2100 (or a stack of currency bills) is inserted into afirst input receptacle 2110. A first transport mechanism 2120 transportsthe currency bill. 2100 from the first input receptacle 2110 to a secondtransport mechanism 2127. The second transport mechanism 2127 transportsthe currency bill 2100 past an image scanner 2140 and to an outputreceptacle 2130. A second input receptacle 2115 is also included in thescanning system and is adapted to receive a check 2105 or a stack ofchecks 2105. A third transport mechanism 2125 transports the check 2105from the second input receptacle 2115 to the second transport mechanism2127. The second transport mechanism 2127 transports the check 2105 pastthe image scanner 2140 and to the output receptacle 2130. It is alsocontemplated that there may be two output receptacles 2130. If there aretwo output receptacles, one may be used for checks and the other forcurrency bills. Alternatively, one may be an off-sort output receptacle.One of the output receptacles could be used to receive transit checksand another output receptacle could be used to receive on-us checks. Itis also contemplated that there may be a plurality of output receptacles2130 and one of the plurality may be an off-sort receptacle.

The image scanner 2140 is adapted to obtain images of the currency bill2100 and check 2105 as discussed above in relation to FIG. 16. Theimages of the currency bill 2100 and the check 2105 are transmitted fromthe image scanner 2140 to a memory 2160, which operates the same as thememory 560 in FIG. 5. Also included in this scanning system are twocontrol panels 2170, 2190 which operate like the control panels 570, 590in FIG. 5. The two control panels 2170, 2190 are also controlled by acontroller 2150.

Turning now to FIG. 22, another embodiment of a document scanning devicewill be described. In this embodiment, a document 2200, or a stack ofdocuments, is inserted into an input receptacle 2210. The document 2200may be a currency bill or a check. In one embodiment, all of the checksare input separate from the currency bills. In another embodiment, thechecks and currency bills may be intermingled. A transport mechanism2220 transports the document 2200 from the input receptacle 2210 past animage scanner 2240 and to an output receptacle 2230. In someembodiments, there is only a single input receptacle 2210 and a singleoutput receptacle 2230. In other embodiments, however, multiple outputreceptacles 2230 a, 2230 b may be added. If the scanning device has twooutput receptacles 2230, 2230 a, when currency bills are beingdenominated, the operator may have the scanning device send onedenomination to one pocket and all other denominations to anotherpocket. When checks are denominated, the operator may route all “on-us”checks, or checks drawn on that bank, to one output receptacle and alltransit checks, or checks drawn on other banks, to a different outputreceptacle. The scanning device may be customized by the operator as tohow the checks and currency bills are to be sorted.

The scanning device also includes a memory 2260, a controller 2250, andcontrol panels 2270, 2290 that all operate as described above. The fullimage scanner 2240 also operates as described above in FIGS. 20 and 21.

Turning now to FIG. 23, another embodiment of a document scanning devicewill be described. In this embodiment, two scanning systems 2300, 2305are linked via a communication link 2360, such as discussed inconnection with FIG. 4 a. The first scanning system 2300 includes afirst input receptacle 2310 for receiving currency bills. The firstscanning system may also include a display 2320, a keyboard 2330,denomination keys 2350, and/or a ten key keypad 2340. The display 2320may be a video display screen, a touch screen or other known display.The display 2320 may be used to display an image of questionablecurrency bill or one that cannot be read by the image scanner. Thecustomer or operator may then utilize the keypad 2340, the keyboard2330, and/or denomination keys 2350 to enter information into the imagefile. Alternatively, if the display 2320 is a touch screen, the customermay enter information on the touch screen.

The second scanning system 2305 includes many of the same features asthe first scanning system 2300, such as an input receptacle 2315, adisplay 2325, a keypad 2345, denomination keys 2355, and a keyboard2335. The second scanning system 2305, however, is adapted to receivechecks into the input receptacle. The checks are then scanned by thescanning system 2305.

In this embodiment, the currency and checks are scanned by imagescanners in the respective systems 2300, 2305, such as described inconnection with prior embodiments. The images obtained from both thefirst and second scanning systems 2300, 2305 are then transmitted via acommunication link 2370 to the first computer 430 as depicted in FIG. 4a.

In another embodiment, the first and second systems 2300, 2305 arelinked via the communication link 2370 to a teller station. The tellerstation has a keyboard, keypad, and/or denomination keys to allow anoperator to input information into the teller station. This embodimentallows the systems 2300, 2305 to be connected to standard tellerstations.

Some additional embodiments contemplated by the device will now bedescribed. For ease of understanding, the embodiments will be labeled Athrough AW.

Alternative Embodiment A

In this embodiment, a currency processing and authentication systemcomprises an input receptacle adapted to receive a plurality of currencybills and an image scanner adapted to obtain an image of a currency billand to extract a serial number from the image of the currency bill.Coupled to the input receptacle is a transport mechanism adapted totransport each of the currency bills one at a time from the inputreceptacle past the image scanner to at least one output receptacle. Amemory storage is adapted to store the obtained image of each of thecurrency bills. Also stored in the memory is at least one serial numberassociated with known counterfeit currency bills. A controller isadapted to compare the extracted serial number to the at least onestored serial number.

Alternative Embodiment B

Another embodiment is a method for depositing currency bills in afinancial account belonging to a customer by the use of a currencyprocessing and authentication system. The method comprises inserting aplurality of currency bills into an input receptacle of the documentprocessing system. Each of the plurality of currency bills istransported one at a time from the input receptacle past an imagescanner. An image of a currency bill is obtained as the currency bill istransported past the image scanner. A serial number is extracted fromthe image of the currency bill. The image and extracted serial numberare stored in a memory, and the extracted serial number is compared toat least one serial number associated with known counterfeit currencybills.

Alternative Embodiment C

Another embodiment is a document processing system for depositingcurrency bills in a financial account of a customer. The currencyprocessing system comprises a scanning device that includes an inputreceptacle adapted to receive a plurality of currency bills. Thescanning device also has an image scanner adapted to obtain full imagesof a currency bill and to extract a serial number filed from the fullimage. The image scanner is further able to create an image filecontaining the full image of the currency bill and the serial numberfield. A transport mechanism is also included in the scanning device andis adapted to transport each of the plurality of currency bills one at atime from the input receptacle past the image scanner to at least oneoutput receptacle. Coupled to the transport mechanism and the imagescanner is a controller that is adapted to control the movement of thetransport mechanism and the operation of the image scanner. Adiscriminator is coupled to the controller and adapted to obtaindenominations of the currency bills that are inserted into the scanningdevice.

A database is communicatively coupled to the controller, and is housedoutside the scanning device. The database includes at least one serialnumber associated with counterfeit currency bills and is adapted tocompare the extracted serial number from the full currency image to theat least one serial number associated with known counterfeit currencybills. In the present embodiment, the scanning device is adapted toreject any currency bills having a serial number matching a serialnumber in the database. A memory storage is also communicatively coupledto the scanning device and stores the image file. Coupled to thecontroller is an interface that is adapted to automatically communicatewith an outside accounting system. The outside accounting system creditsthe financial account belonging to the customer for the amount of thediscriminated currency bills substantially immediately.

Alternative Embodiment D

In another alternative embodiment, a method is provided for depositingcurrency bills in a financial account belonging to a customer throughthe use of a scanning device having an image scanner. The methodcomprises inserting a stack of currency bills into the scanning device.Each of the stack of currency bills is imaged, and a serial number fromeach of the stack of currency bills is extracted. An image filecontaining the full image and the extracted serial number is created.The serial number from each of the stack of currency bills is comparedto a list of counterfeit serial numbers. Any currency bills with aserial number that matches a serial number on the list is transported toan output receptacle and the denomination of the other currency bills isdiscriminated. A memory stores the image file, and the financial accountof the customer is credited based on the denominations of the currencybills.

Alternative Embodiment E

Another alternative embodiment is for a document processing system fordepositing currency bills in a financial account of a customer. In thisembodiment, the document processing system comprises a plurality ofscanning devices. Each of the plurality of scanning devices has an inputreceptacle adapted to accept a currency bill and an image scanneradapted to obtain full images of the currency bill and to extractinformation from the currency bill. The individual scanning devices alsohave a transport mechanism coupled to the input receptacle and adaptedto transport the currency bill from the input receptacle past the imagescanner and a controller coupled to the image scanner and the transportmechanism and adapted to control the operation of the image scanner andthe transport mechanism.

The currency imaging device also has a memory device communicativelycoupled to each of the plurality of scanning devices. The memoryincludes a list of information, and the controller in each of theplurality of scanning devices is adapted to compare the list ofinformation to the extracted information. The memory device then storesthe image and the extracted information for later use. An interfacecoupled to each of the plurality of scanning devices is also included inthe currency imaging device. The interface communicates with an outsideaccounting system. The outside accounting system is able to credit thefinancial account belonging to the customer substantially immediately.

Alternative Embodiment F

Another embodiment is for a currency scanning device for acceptingcurrency bills from a customer. The currency scanning device comprises ascanning device having an input receptacle adapted to receive aplurality of currency bills and an image scanner adapted to obtain fullimages of a currency bill and to extract a serial number filed from thefull image. The image scanner creates an image file containing the fullimage of the currency bill, the serial number field, and an accountnumber. The scanning device further includes a transport mechanismadapted to transport each of the plurality of currency bills one at atime from the input receptacle past the image scanner to at least oneoutput receptacle. Also included in the scanning device is a controllercoupled to the transport mechanism and the image scanner and adapted tocontrol the movement of the transport mechanism and the operation of theimage scanner, and a discriminator coupled to the controller and adaptedto obtain denominations of the currency bills.

The currency scanning device further contains a memory storage that iscommunicatively coupled to the scanning device to store the image file.The memory storage stores the image files by serial number so that whena serial number is found to be associated with a counterfeit bill, thememory can be searched for an image file containing the serial number ofthe counterfeit bill. An interface coupled to the memory storage and toan outside accounting system is also included in the scanning device.The interface reads an account number from the image file containing thecounterfeit serial number and communicates the account number to theoutside accounting system. The outside accounting system is adapted todebit a financial account associated with the account number for theamount of the counterfeit bill.

Alternative Embodiment G

Another embodiment is a method for processing currency, comprising afirst step of providing a scanning device having an image scanner. Next,a stack of currency bills is inserted into the scanning device. The fullimage of each of the stack of currency bills is then obtained and aserial number from each of the stack of currency bills is extracted.After creating an image file containing the full image, the extractedserial number, and an account number associated with a financial accountthat will be credited with the currency bill, the image file is storedin a memory. Next, the financial account of the customer, based on thedenominations of the currency bills, is credited and the bills areauthenticated. Finally, the financial account is debited for anycounterfeit bills that are later found.

Alternative Embodiment H

In this embodiment, a currency processing and authentication systemcomprises an input receptacle adapted to receive a plurality of currencybills and an image scanner adapted to obtain an image of a currency billand to extract a serial number from the image of the currency bill. Anauthentication and discrimination unit is also included to performcounterfeit testing on the currency bill. Coupled to the inputreceptacle is a transport mechanism adapted to transport each of thecurrency bills one at a time from the input receptacle past the imagescanner and the authentication and discrimination unit to at least oneoutput receptacle. A memory storage is adapted to store the obtainedimage of each of the currency bills. The memory is also adapted to storeat least one serial number of counterfeit currency bills. A controlleris adapted to update the memory with a serial number of a currency billdetermined to be counterfeit by the authentication and discriminationunit.

Alternative Embodiment I

In this embodiment, a currency processing and authentication systemcomprises an input receptacle adapted to receive a plurality of currencybills and an image scanner adapted to obtain an image of a currency billand to extract a serial number from the image of the currency bill.Coupled to the input receptacle is a transport mechanism adapted totransport each of the currency bills one at a time from the inputreceptacle past the image scanner and the authentication anddiscrimination unit to at least one output receptacle. A memory storageis adapted to store the obtained image of each of the currency bills.The memory is also adapted to store at least one serial number ofcounterfeit currency bills. A controller is adapted to update the memorywith a serial number of a currency bill determined to be counterfeit byother means.

Alternative Embodiment J

In this embodiment, a method for processing currency bills to bedeposited in a financial account belonging to a customer using adocument scanning device having an image scanner comprises the step ofreceiving a stack of currency bills into an input receptacle. Next, eachof the bills are transported one at a time from the input receptaclepast the image scanner to at least one output receptacle. An image ofeach of the currency bills with the image scanner is then obtained andthe serial number from each of the images is then extracted. Counterfeittesting is then performed on the currency bills. The serial number ofany currency bills that do not pass the counterfeit tests aretransmitted to a memory for updating a list of counterfeit serialnumbers to be used in future counterfeit tests.

Alternative Embodiment K

In this embodiment, a memory includes full images of currency bills thathave been scanned by an image scanner. The memory may be searchable byextracted fields of the images.

Alternative Embodiment L

In this embodiment, a document processing system for processing aplurality of currency bills to be deposited in a financial account of acustomer includes a currency scanning device. The scanning device has aninput receptacle adapted to receive a plurality of currency bills. Animage scanner is also included and is adapted to obtain an image of aside of a currency bill to extract a predetermined field from the image.Furthermore, the image scanner is adapted to create an image filecontaining the image of the currency bill. Also included is a transportmechanism adapted to transport each of the plurality of currency billsone at a time from the input receptacle past the image scanner to atleast one output receptacle. A controller is coupled to the transportmechanism and the image scanner, and the controller is adapted tocontrol the operation of the transport mechanism and the image scanner.The scanning device also includes a discrimination and authenticationunit adapted to determine the denomination of each of the currency billsand to perform counterfeit testing on the currency bills. Thediscrimination and authentication unit is coupled to the controller. Amemory is communicatively coupled to the controller, and the memory isadapted to store at least one predetermined field associated withcounterfeit currency bills, wherein the controller is adapted toretrieve the at least one predetermined field from the memory andcompare extracted predetermined fields to the at least one storedpredetermined field, wherein the scanning device is adapted to rejectany currency bills having a predetermined field matching a predeterminedfield in the database.

Alternative Embodiment M

In this embodiment, a document processing system for processing aplurality of currency bills to be deposited in a financial account of acustomer includes a currency scanning device. The scanning device has aninput receptacle adapted to receive a plurality of currency bills. Animage scanner is also included and is adapted to obtain an image of aside of a currency bill to extract encoded data from the image.Furthermore, the image scanner is adapted to create an image filecontaining the image of the currency bill. Also included is a transportmechanism adapted to transport each of the plurality of currency billsone at a time from the input receptacle past the image scanner to atleast one output receptacle. A controller is coupled to the transportmechanism and the image scanner, and the controller is adapted tocontrol the operation of the transport mechanism and the image scanner.The scanning device also includes a discrimination and authenticationunit adapted to determine the denomination of each of the currency billsand to perform counterfeit testing on the currency bills. Thediscrimination and authentication unit is coupled to the controller. Amemory is communicatively coupled to the controller, and the memory isadapted to store at least one encoded data having stored therein atleast one encoded data field associated with counterfeit currency bills,wherein the controller is adapted to retrieve the at least one encodeddata field from the memory and;to compare extracted encoded data fieldsto the at least one stored encoded data field, wherein the scanningdevice is adapted to reject any currency bills having an encoded datafield matching an encoded data field in the database.

Alternative Embodiment N

In any of the embodiments A–M, a plurality of currency bills areinserted into the device and the plurality of currency bills are a stackof currency bills.

Alternative Embodiment O

In any of the embodiments A–N, the output receptacle is a single outputreceptacle.

Alternative Embodiment P

In any of the embodiments A–M, the output receptacle includes a firstoutput receptacle and a second output receptacle.

Alternative Embodiment Q

In the embodiment P, one of the first and second output receptacles isan offsort receptacle.

Alternative Embodiment R

In any of the embodiments A–M, the output receptacle is a plurality ofoutput receptacles.

Alternative Embodiment S

In the embodiment R, the plurality of output receptacles include oneoff-sort receptacle.

Alternative Embodiment T

In any of the embodiments A–S, the system further comprises a stackerwheel comprising flexible blades positioned to restack documents in theoutput receptacle.

Alternative Embodiment U

In any of the embodiments A–T, the image scanned is a full image of theentire currency bill.

Alternative Embodiment V

In any of the embodiments A–U, the system further comprises a controlpanel communicatively coupled to the memory and adapted to provide asignal if the extracted serial number of the currency bill matches aserial number on the list.

Alternative Embodiment W

In the embodiment V, the control panel comprises a display screen.

Alternative Embodiment X

In the embodiment V, the control panel comprises a blinking light.

Alternative Embodiment Y

In any of the embodiments A–X, the controller is adapted to flag acurrency bill having a serial number matching a serial number stored inthe memory.

Alternative Embodiment Z

In the embodiment Y, the controller is further adapted to halt theoperation of the system if a currency bill is flagged.

Alternative Embodiment AA

In the embodiment Z, the controller is further adapted to continue theoperation of the system if a currency bill is flagged.

Alternative Embodiment AB

In any of the embodiments A–AA, the system further comprises aninterface coupled to the controller and adapted to automaticallycommunicate with an outside accounting system, the outside accountingsystem being adapted to credit the financial account belonging to thecustomer substantially immediately.

Alternative Embodiment AC

In any of the embodiments A–AB, the transport mechanism feeds thecurrency bill in a direction that is perpendicular to a longer edge ofthe currency bill.

Alternative Embodiment AD

In any of the embodiments A–AC, the transport mechanism feeds thecurrency bill in a direction that is parallel to a longer edge of thecurrency bill.

Alternative Embodiment AE

In any of the embodiments A–AD, the transport mechanism is adapted totransport the currency bills at a rate of from about 300 to 400 currencybills per minute.

Alternative Embodiment AF

In any of the embodiments A–AE, the transport mechanism is adapted totransport the currency bills at a rate in excess of 800 currency billsper minute.

Alternative Embodiment AG

In any of the embodiments A–AF, the image scanner is further adapted toextract and store a denomination of the currency bill.

Alternative Embodiment AH

In any of the embodiments A–AG, the image scanner is further adapted toextract and store a Federal Reserve Bank number on the currency bill.

Alternative Embodiment AI

In any of the embodiments A–AG, the image scanner is further adapted toextract and store a signatory on the currency bill.

Alternative Embodiment AJ

In any of the embodiments A–AI, the controller is further adapted to adda date of deposit onto the image file.

Alternative Embodiment AK

In any of the embodiments A–AJ, the system further comprises a secondinput receptacle adapted to receive a plurality of checks.

Alternative Embodiment AL

In the embodiment AK, the system further comprises a second imagescanner adapted to obtain an image of a side of each of the checks andto extract an amount from each of the checks. The second image scanneris also adapted to create an image file containing the image of the sideof the check and the amount. A transport mechanism is also included andis adapted to transport each of the checks one at a time from the secondinput receptacle and past the image scanner to a second outputreceptacle. The memory is further adapted to store the image file ofeach of the checks. The controller is adapted to transmit the image fileto a processor at a financial institution, the processor adapted tocredit an account with the amount on the image file of the check.

Alternative Embodiment AM

In any of the embodiments A–AL, the input receptacle, the image scanner,the transport mechanism, the memory, and the controller are in a firsthousing. The system further includes a second housing having a secondimage scanner. The second image scanner is adapted to obtain an image ofa side of each of a check and to extract an amount from the check. Thesecond image scanner is also further adapted to create a check imagefile containing the image of the side of the check and the amount. Asecond transport mechanism is also included and is adapted to transporteach of the checks one at a time from the second input receptacle pastthe second image scanner to a second output receptacle. The memory isfurther adapted to store the image file of each of the checks. Thecontroller is adapted to transmit the image file to a processor at afinancial institution, while the processor is adapted to credit anaccount with the amount on the image file of the check.

Alternative Embodiment AN

In the embodiment AM, the first housing further comprises a value entrymeans adapted to receive an input from a customer indicating the amountof a currency bill being imaged by the image scanner.

Alternative Embodiment AO

In the embodiment AN, the value entry means is a plurality ofdenomination keys.

Alternative Embodiment AP

In the embodiment AN, the value entry means is a keyboard.

Alternative Embodiment AQ

In the embodiment AN, the value entry means is a numeric keypad.

Alternative Embodiment AR

In the embodiment AM, the second housing further comprises a displayadapted to display a check when the amount of the check is unable to bescanned by the second image scanner.

Alternative Embodiment AS

In the embodiment AR, the value entry means is a plurality ofdenomination keys.

Alternative Embodiment AT

In the embodiment AR, the value entry means is a keyboard.

Alternative Embodiment AU

In the embodiment AR, the value entry means is a numeric keypad.

Alternative Embodiment AV

In any of the embodiments A–AU, counterfeit testing is performed.

Alternative Embodiment AW

In the embodiment AV, the counterfeit testing is at least one ofultraviolet testing, infrared testing, magnetic testing, thread testing,and image comparison testing.

While the present invention has been described with reference to one ormore particular embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognizethat many changes may be made thereto without departing from the spiritand scope of the present invention. Each of these embodiments andobvious variations thereof is contemplated as falling within the spiritand scope of the claimed invention, which is set forth in the followingclaims.

1. A system for processing documents comprising: at least one inputreceptacle for receiving documents; at least one output receptacle forreceiving documents; an input device that receives customeridentification information; an image scanner that obtains an image of atleast a portion of at least one side of each received document andextracts, from each document image, an amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document; an evaluation unit that determines adocument value of each document; a transport mechanism that transportseach received document, one at a time, from the at least one inputreceptacle, past the image scanner and evaluation unit, to the at leastone output receptacle a processor that operates to create a searchablefile, the searchable file comprising the extracted amount of informationwhich uniquely identifies the document, the document value and thecustomer identification information; a memory that stores the searchablefile; means for crediting an account associated with the customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the documentvalue of each received document; means for searching the memory based onan amount of information which identifies at least one counterfeitdocument to identify customer identification information associated withany received document having matching information and; means fordebiting the account associated with the retrieved customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the documentvalue of each document with matching information.
 2. The systemaccording to claim 1, wherein the means for searching functions to:receive a request that provides an amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document; respond to the request bysearching the memory and comparing the amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document to the extracted amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies the document stored in the memory;respond to the request by retrieving from the memory any customeridentification information associated with any received document withmatching information and the document value associated with any receiveddocument with matching information; and wherein the means for debitingdebits an account associated with the retrieved customer identificationinformation by an amount corresponding to the document value of eachdocument where the extracted amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document matches the amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document.
 3. The system according toclaim 2, wherein the account is debited only if selectable criteria aremet.
 4. The system according to claim 1, wherein: the documents arecurrency bills; the amount of information which uniquely identifies thedocument is a currency bill serial number; and the amount of informationwhich identifies at least one counterfeit document is at least onecounterfeit currency bill serial number.
 5. The system according toclaim 1, wherein: the documents are checks; the amount of informationwhich uniquely identifies the document is at least one of an ABA number,an account number and a check number; the amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document is at least one of aflagged ABA number, a flagged account number, and a flagged checknumber.
 6. The system according to claim 5, wherein the at least oneflagged ABA number, the at least one flagged account number, and/or theat least one flagged check number are associated with counterfeitchecks, accounts with insufficient funds, checks with stop paymentorders, accounts with holds, overdrawn accounts, and/or closed accounts.7. The system according to claim 1, wherein: the documents are currencybills and checks; the amount of information which uniquely identifiesthe document, that is a currency bill, is a currency bill serial number;the amount of information which uniquely identifies the document, thatis a check, is at least one of an ABA number, an account number and acheck number; the amount of information which uniquely identifies atleast one counterfeit document, that is a currency bill, is at least onecounterfeit currency bill serial number; and the amount of informationwhich identifies at least one counterfeit document, that is a check, isat least one of a flagged ABA number, a flagged account number, and aflagged check number.
 8. The system according to claim 7, wherein the atleast one flagged ABA number, the at least one flagged account number,and/or the at least one flagged check number are associated withcounterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds, checks with stoppayment orders, accounts with holds, overdrawn accounts, and/or closedaccounts.
 9. The system according to claim 1, wherein the processorgenerates a report which includes at least the extracted amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies any document identified as asuspect document and the associated customer identification information.10. The system according to claim 1, further comprising a discriminationand authentication unit linked to the processor and operable to testeach of the received documents using one or more tests for detectingcounterfeit documents; and wherein: the transport mechanism furthertransports each of the received documents, one at a time, past thediscrimination and authentication unit; the processor identifies, as asuspect document, each received document that fails any of the one ormore tests for detecting counterfeit documents; and further comprisingmeans for crediting an account associated with the customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the documentvalue of each received document that is not identified as a suspectdocument.
 11. The system according to claim 10, wherein: the documentsare currency bills; the amount of information which uniquely identifiesthe document is a currency bill serial number; and the amount ofinformation which identifies at least one counterfeit document is atleast one counterfeit currency bill serial number.
 12. The systemaccording to claim 10, wherein: the documents are checks; the amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies the document is at least one of anABA number, an account number and a check number; the amount ofinformation which identifies at least one counterfeit document is atleast one of a flagged ABA number, a flagged account number, and aflagged check number.
 13. The system according to claim 12, wherein theat least one flagged ABA number, the at least one flagged accountnumber, and/or the at least one flagged check number are associated withcounterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds, checks with stoppayment orders, accounts with holds, overdrawn accounts, and/or closedaccounts.
 14. The system according to claim 10, wherein: the documentsare currency bills and checks; the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document, that is a currency bill, is a currency billserial number; the amount of information which uniquely identifies thedocument, that is a check, is at least one of an ABA number, an accountnumber and a check number; the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies at least one counterfeit document, that is a currency bill,is at least one counterfeit currency bill serial number; and the amountof information which identifies at least one counterfeit document, thatis a check, is at least one of a flagged ABA number, a flagged accountnumber, and a flagged check number.
 15. The system according to claim14, wherein the at least one flagged ABA number, the at least oneflagged account number, and/or the at least one flagged check number areassociated with counterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds,checks with stop payment orders, accounts with holds, overdrawnaccounts, and/or closed accounts.
 16. The system according to claim 10,wherein the processor generates a report which includes at least theextracted amount of information which uniquely identifies any documentidentified as a suspect document and the associated customeridentification information.
 17. The system according to claim 1, whereinthe received documents and the customer identification information arerelated to a transaction; and the processor creates a searchable filefor the transaction, the searchable file comprising the extracted amountof information which uniquely identifies each document related to thetransaction and the customer identification information related to thetransaction.
 18. The system according to claim 17, wherein the processordetermines a transaction sum, where the transaction sum is the sum ofthe document values of the documents related to the transaction, and themeans for crediting credits an account associated with the customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the transactionsum.
 19. A method for processing documents, comprising receivingdocuments; obtaining customer identification information; obtaining animage of at least a portion of at least one side of each receiveddocument; extracting, from the image of each received document, anamount of information which uniquely identifies the document; evaluatinga document value of each received document; creating a searchable file,the searchable file comprising the customer identification information,document value and the extracted amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document; storing the searchable file; crediting anaccount associated with the customer identification information by anamount corresponding to the document value of each received document;searching the memory based on an amount of information which identifiesat least one counterfeit document to identify customer identificationinformation associated with any received document having matchinginformation and; debiting the account associated with the retrievedcustomer identification information by an amount corresponding to thedocument value of each document with matching information.
 20. Themethod according to claim 19, wherein the amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document is data extracted from a predeterminedfield of the document image.
 21. The method according to claim 19,wherein the amount of information which uniquely identifies the documentis an encoded data field of the document image.
 22. The method accordingto claim 19, wherein: the documents are currency bills; and the amountof information which uniquely identifies the document is a currency billserial number.
 23. The method according to claim 19 wherein: thedocuments are currency bills the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the currency bill comprises the currency bill serial numberand at least one of a series number, a signatory name, a back platenumber, a city code, a front plate number, a print code and a valueamount.
 24. The method according to claim 23, wherein the searchablefile further comprises at least one of the extracted currency billseries number, the extracted currency bill signatory name, the extractedcurrency bill back plate number, the extracted currency bill city code,the extracted currency bill front plate number, the extracted currencybill print code and the extracted currency bill value amount.
 25. Themethod according to claim 24, further comprising retrieving at least oneof the extracted currency bill serial number, the customeridentification information, the extracted currency bill series number,the extracted currency bill signatory name, the extracted currency billback plate number, the extracted currency bill city code, the extractedcurrency bill front plate number, the extracted currency bill print codeand the extracted currency bill value amount.
 26. The method accordingto claim 24, further comprising sorting the searchable files accordingto at least one of the extracted currency bill serial number, thecustomer identification information, the extracted currency bill seriesnumber, the extracted currency bill signatory name, the extractedcurrency bill back plate number, the extracted currency bill city code,the extracted currency bill front plate number, the extracted currencybill print code and the extracted currency bill value amount.
 27. Themethod according to claim 19, wherein: the documents are checks; and theamount of information which uniquely identifies each document is atleast one of an ABA number, an account number and a check number. 28.The method according to claim 19, wherein: the documents are currencybills and checks; the amount of information which uniquely identifieseach document, that is a currency bill, is a currency bill serialnumber; and the amount of information which uniquely identifies eachdocument, that is a check, is at least one of an ABA number, an accountnumber and a check number.
 29. The method according to claim 19, whereinthe received documents and the customer identification information arerelated to a transaction; and further comprising: creating a searchablefile for the transaction, the searchable file comprising the extractedamount of information which uniquely identifies each document related tothe transaction and the customer identification information related tothe transaction.
 30. The method according to claim 19, furthercomprising retrieving at least one of the extracted amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies the document and the customeridentification information.
 31. The method according to claim 19,further comprising sorting the searchable files according to at leastone of the extracted amount of information which uniquely identifies thedocument and the customer identification information.
 32. The methodaccording to claim 19, further comprising obtaining images of at least aportion of each side of each received document and extracting, fromeither document image, an amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document.
 33. The method according to claim 32, furthercomprising storing, in the searchable file, the document image.
 34. Themethod according to claim 19, further comprising storing, in thesearchable file, the document image.
 35. The method according to claim34, further comprising retrieving at least one of the extracted amountof information which uniquely identifies the document, the documentimage, and the customer identification information.
 36. The methodaccording to claim 34, further comprising sorting the searchable filesaccording to at least one of the extracted amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document and the customer identificationinformation.
 37. The method according to claim 19, further comprising:receiving a request for access to data in the searchable file, therequest providing an amount of information which identifies at least onecounterfeit document; responding to the request by searching thesearchable files and comparing the amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document to the extracted amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies the document; and responding tothe request by retrieving the customer identification informationassociated with any matching information.
 38. The method according toclaim 37, wherein: the documents are currency bills; the amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies the document is a currency billserial number; and the amount of information which identifies at leastone counterfeit document is at least one counterfeit currency billserial number.
 39. The method according to claim 37, wherein: thedocuments are checks; the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies each document is at least one of an ABA number, an accountnumber and a check number; and the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies at least one counterfeit document is at least one of aflagged ABA number, a flagged account number and a flagged check number.40. The method according to claim 39, wherein the at least one flaggedABA number, the at least one flagged account number, and/or the at leastone flagged check number are associated with counterfeit checks,accounts with insufficient funds, checks with stop payment orders,accounts with holds, overdrawn accounts, and/or closed accounts.
 41. Themethod according to claim 37, wherein: the documents are currency billsand checks; the amount of information which uniquely identifies eachdocument, that is a currency bill, is a currency bill serial number; theamount of information which identifies at least one counterfeitdocument, that is a currency bill, is at least one counterfeit currencybill serial number the amount of information which uniquely identifieseach document, that is a check, is at least one of an ABA number, anaccount number and a check number; and the amount of information whichuniquely identifies at least one counterfeit document, that is a check,is at least one of a flagged ABA number, a flagged account number and aflagged check number.
 42. The method according to claim 41, wherein theat least one flagged ABA number, the at least one flagged accountnumber, and/or the at least one flagged check number are associated withcounterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds, checks with stoppayment orders, accounts with holds, overdrawn accounts, and/or closedaccounts.
 43. The method according to claim 37, wherein the requestprovides customer identification information and further comprising:responding to the request by searching the searchable files andcomparing the customer identification information provided by therequest to the customer identification information stored in thesearchable files; and responding to the request by retrieving theextracted amount of information which uniquely identifies the documentassociated with any matching customer identification information. 44.The method according to claim 19, further comprising linking to anetwork.
 45. The method according to claim 44, further comprising:linking a plurality of systems to the network; and communicating, viathe network, in receiving and responding to the requests.
 46. The methodaccording to claim 19, further comprising: receiving a request thatprovides an amount of information which identifies at least onecounterfeit document; searching the searchable files and comparing theamount of information which identifies at least one counterfeit documentto the extracted amount of information which uniquely identifies thedocument; retrieving the customer identification information associatedwith any received document with matching information and the documentvalue associated with any received document with matching information;and debiting the account associated with the retrieved customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the documentvalue of each document where the extracted amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document matches the amount of information whichidentifies the at least one counterfeit document.
 47. The methodaccording to claim 19, further comprising debiting the account only ifselectable criteria are met.
 48. The method according to claim 19,further comprising: testing each of the received document using one ormore tests for detecting counterfeit documents; identifying, as asuspect document, each document that fails any of the one or more testsfor detecting counterfeit documents; and crediting an account associatedwith the customer identification information by an amount correspondingto the document value of each document that is not identified as asuspect document.
 49. The method according to claim 48, wherein: thedocuments are currency bills; the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document is a currency bill serial number; and the amountof information which identifies at least one counterfeit document is atleast one counterfeit currency bill serial number.
 50. The methodaccording to claim 48, wherein: the documents are checks; the amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies each document is at least one ofan ABA number, an account number and a check number; and the amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies at least one counterfeit documentis at least one of a flagged ABA number, a flagged account number and aflagged check number.
 51. The method according to claim 50, wherein theat least one flagged ABA number, the at least one flagged accountnumber, and/or the at least one flagged check number are associated withcounterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds, checks with stoppayment orders, accounts with holds, overdrawn accounts, and/or closedaccounts.
 52. The method according to claim 48, wherein: the documentsare currency bills and checks; the amount of information which uniquelyidentifies each document, that is a currency bill, is a currency billserial number; the amount of information which identifies at least onecounterfeit document, that is a currency bill, is at least onecounterfeit currency bill serial number the amount of information whichuniquely identifies each document, that is a check, is at least one ofan ABA number, an account number and a check number; and the amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies at least one counterfeit document,that is a check, is at least one of a flagged ABA number, a flaggedaccount number and a flagged check number.
 53. The method according toclaim 52, wherein the at least one flagged ABA number, the at least oneflagged account number, and/or the at least one flagged check number areassociated with counterfeit checks, accounts with insufficient funds,checks with stop payment orders, accounts with holds, overdrawnaccounts, and/or closed accounts.
 54. The method according to claim 48,further comprising generating a report which includes at least theextracted amount of information which uniquely identifies any documentidentified as a suspect document and the associated customeridentification information.
 55. The method according to claim 19,wherein the documents and the customer identification are related to atransaction; the method further comprising: creating a searchable filefor the transaction, the searchable file comprising the customeridentification information related to the transaction and the amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies each document related to thetransaction.
 56. The method according to claim 55, further comprising:determining a transaction sum, where the transaction sum is the sum ofthe document values of each received document related to thetransaction; and crediting an account associated with the customeridentification information related to the transaction by an amountcorresponding to the transaction sum.
 57. The method according to claim55, further comprising: storing an amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document; comparing each extractedamount of information which uniquely identifies the document to theamount of information which identifies at least one counterfeitdocument; identifying, as a suspect document, any document having anamount of information which uniquely identifies the document thatmatches the amount of information which identifies at least onecounterfeit document; determining a transaction sum, where thetransaction sum is the sum of the document values of each receiveddocument that is related to the transaction and is not identified as asuspect document; and crediting an account associated with the customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the transactionsum.
 58. The method according to claim 55, further comprising: testingeach of the received document using one or more tests for detectingcounterfeit documents; identifying, as a suspect document, each documentthat fails any of the one or more tests for detecting counterfeitdocuments; determining a transaction sum, where the transaction sum isthe sum of the document values of each received document that is relatedto the transaction and is not identified as a suspect document; andcrediting an account associated with the customer identificationinformation by an amount corresponding to the transaction sum.
 59. Asystem for processing documents comprising: at least one inputreceptacle for receiving documents; at least one output receptacle forreceiving documents; an input device for receiving customeridentification information; an image scanner that obtains an image of atleast a portion of at least one side of each received document andextracts, from each document image, an amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document; a transport mechanism that transportseach document, one at a time, from the at least one input receptacle,past the image scanner, to the at least one output receptacle; aprocessor that operates to create a searchable file, the searchable filecomprising the extracted amount of information which uniquely identifiesthe document, a value of the document and the customer identificationinformation; a memory that stores the searchable file; and the processorreceives a request that provides an amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document; the processor responds tothe request by searching the memory and comparing the amount ofinformation which identifies at least one counterfeit document to theextracted amount of information which uniquely identifies the documentstored in the memory so as to retrieve from the memory any customeridentification information associated with any received document withmatching information and cause an account associated with that customeridentification information to be debited by the value of the document.60. A system for processing documents comprising: at least one inputreceptacle for receiving documents; at least one output receptacle forreceiving documents; an input device for receiving customeridentification information; an image scanner that obtains an image of atleast a portion of at least one side of each received document andextracts, from each document image, an amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document; an evaluation unit that determines adocument value of each document; a transport mechanism that transportseach document, one at a time, from the at least one input receptacle,past the image scanner and the evaluation unit, to the at least oneoutput receptacle; a processor that operates to create a searchablefile, the searchable file comprising the extracted amount of informationwhich uniquely identifies the document, the document value, and thecustomer identification information; a memory that stores the searchablefile; and the processor further credits an account associated with thecustomer identification information by an amount corresponding to thedocument value of each received document; the processor receives arequest that provides an amount of information which identifies at leastone counterfeit document; the processor responds to the request bysearching the memory and comparing the amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document to the extracted amount ofinformation which uniquely identifies the document stored in the memory;the processor responds to the request by retrieving from the memory anycustomer identification information associated with any receiveddocument with matching information and the document value associatedwith any received document with matching information; and the processordebits an account associated with the retrieved customer identificationinformation by an amount corresponding to the document value of eachdocument where the, extracted amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document matches the amount of information whichidentifies at least one counterfeit document.
 61. A method forprocessing documents, the method comprising the acts of: receivingdocuments; obtaining customer identification information; obtaining animage of at least a portion of at least one side of each receiveddocument; extracting, from the image of each received document, anamount of information which uniquely identifies the document; evaluatingthe document value of each received document; and creating a searchablefile, the searchable file comprising the customer identificationinformation, the extracted amount of information which uniquelyidentifies the document, and the document value; storing the searchablefile; crediting an account associated with the customer identificationinformation by an amount corresponding to the document value of eachreceived document; receiving a request that provides an amount ofinformation which identifies at least one counterfeit document;responding to the request by searching the searchable files andcomparing the amount of information which identifies at least onecounterfeit document to the extracted amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document; responding to the request byretrieving the customer identification information associated with anyreceived document with matching information and the document valueassociated with any received document with matching information; anddebiting an account associated with the retrieved customeridentification information by an amount corresponding to the documentvalue of each document where the extracted amount of information whichuniquely identifies the document matches the amount of information whichidentifies the at least one counterfeit document.